Grilled Chicken Tacos
Intro
If you were searching the website for delicious taco recipe, you came to a right place. These tacos are made with chicken thighs, corn tortillas, corn salsa, tomato salsa, lots of cilantro and lime! Every time I make these tacos they turn out just as amazing as tacos in my local taqueria. What makes good tacos stand out? Well first and foremost the meat - it has to be properly seasoned, without spices overtaking the flavors and overwhelming your taste buds. For example, cumin, a spice that is used widely in Mexican cuisine, adds earthiness and depth to any meat. However, using too much cumin can overpower the meat and make it taste bitter; therefore it has to be used sparingly. The meat also has to be cooked just right so that it doesn’t turn out dry and rubbery.
Great tasting salsas and taco relishes can also make the dish stand out. To make my corn salsa I used fire roasted corn. Even though the corn was frozen, after I brought it to room temperature it tasted just as if it came off the grill! You can get creative with your salsa and relishes - just don’t forget to add lime and cilantro! I didn’t add any sour cream or cheese to my tacos, but you can certainly do so if you desire! I hope you find this recipe easy to follow and I hope you will love these tacos as much as my family and I do.
Recipe
Ingredients
1.5 lbs of chicken thighs
2 medium tomatoes
1 cup of corn (fire roasted proffered)
1/2 red onion
1/2 yellow onion
Chopped cilantro
Sea salt
3 cloves of garlic
2 limes
jalapeño pepper (optional)
3/4 teaspoons of paprika
3/4 teaspoons of cumin powder (or you can crush cumin seeds with mortal and pestle)
3/4 teaspoons of black pepper
1/4 teaspoons of cayenne pepper or chili powder (optional)
Corn or flour taco tortillas
Some olive oil
Instructions
Corn Salsa
Chop about 1/4 of red onion, some cilantro and a tiny bit of the jalapeño pepper. If you like your salsa spicy, use more of the jalapeño.
Combine cilantro, jalapeño, and onion with 1 cup of corn. Add a pinch of sea salt (to taste) and a bit of freshly squeezed lime juice.
Taste the salsa and readjust the salt if needed. For more acidity, add more of lime juice .
Tomato Salsa
Chop about 1/4 of red onion, 2 tomatoes, and some cilantro. Mince 1 clove of garlic.
Combine red onion, tomatoes, cilantro and garlic. Add a pinch of sea salt (to taste) to your salsa and some freshly squeezed lime juice.
Taste the salsa and readjust the salt if needed. For more acidity, add more lime juice.
Tortillas
Place your flour or corn tortillas on the hot grill and cook them for about 30 seconds on each side.
When stacking cooked tortillas together, try not to stack them up too high because this could trap moisture and make your tortillas soggy - so spread them out a bit if possible.
Chicken
Take 3 to 4 tablespoons of olive oil and add the following ingredients to it: 3/4 teaspoons of paprika, 3/4 teaspoons of cumin powder, 3/4 teaspoons of black pepper, 1/4 teaspoons of cayenne pepper or chili powder, 2 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lime juice, and 1 teaspoon of sea salt (add a pinch more if you like your dishes sightly more salty). Mix everything together.
In the bowl or container, combine olive oil mixture with the chicken. Then add 1/2 of chopped yellow onion and some chopped parsley to the chicken as well.
Let the chicken marinate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
Take the chicken out of the fridge and leave it at room temperature at least 30 minutes before you begin grilling it.
Preheat your cast iron skillet and brush it with some oil.
Shake off excess onion from the chicken and place pieces of chicken on the grill, without overcrowding it. Grill the chicken thighs for about 5 to 8 minutes on each side, or until fully cooked (reaching temperature of 165 F / 75 C).
Take the chicken off the grill and let it rest for few minutes. Then cut the chicken into small cubes. It is now ready to be wrapped in tortillas!
Assembling Tacos
This is the easy part. Take your tacos, add chicken, your salsas and more cilantro. As mentioned previously, you can add sour cream and cheese to your tacos as well. I know eating tacos can be a bit messy but isn’t it part of the fun? Enjoy!