tortilla

Chicken Fried Rice Tacos

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Chicken Fried Rice Tacos

I ate at a restaurant last time I was in Charleston that had hibachi tacos on the menu. They were so good, so I decided I needed to try to make something similar at home. I’ll definitely be making these again!

You could easily make this vegetarian by nixing the chicken and increasing the proportion of veggies. It would also probably be good with cooked pulled chicken – just add toward the end if you’re using cooked chicken.

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 cup rice
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic
1 zucchini, julienned
⅓ cup bean sprouts
⅓ cup chopped water chestnuts
½ cup mixed frozen peas and carrots
Sesame oil
2-3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp Sriracha
1 egg
Soft tortillas (flour or corn)
Japanese shrimp sauce or yum yum sauce

Instructions 

Cook the rice (once done, set aside). While the rice is cooking, preheat a wok on the stovetop on medium heat. Meanwhile, prep the veggies (except the garlic) and water chestnuts. Set aside.

Slice chicken into thin, short strips. Coat with about 1 tbsp soy sauce.

Add a small amount of sesame oil to the wok (about 1 tsp). Grate the garlic into the wok using a lemon zester. Cook the chicken for about 5 minutes until almost cooked through. The necessary cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of the chicken. Add the veggies and cook for another several minutes (by this time, the chicken should be done).

Turn the heat up to high, add the rice, remaining soy sauce, and Sriracha. Mix to combine. Cook for about 3 minutes, stirring about once per minute.

Beat the egg with a fork to scramble. Clear a spot in the middle of the fried rice mixture for the egg, like this

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Stir the egg continuously while it’s cooking so it doesn’t burn (you’ll want it to break up into pieces). Once it’s pretty much cooked, mix it in with the rest of the rice. This is a good time to taste it and make sure it doesn’t need salt. The soy sauce is pretty salty, but I think I added a pinch of salt. Cook for another 3 minutes or so, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

Heat tortillas. Spoon mixture onto tortillas and top with Japanese shrimp sauce or yum yum sauce.

Jalapeno Popper Corn Dip

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Jalapeno Popper Corn DipI haven’t posted in a while! Right after I made the mint chocolate chip ice cream in the previous post, our fridge died. We were without a fridge for almost 3 weeks (long story), which resulted in eating out a lot. Then we went on vacation. So now I’m back and ready for more cooking and blogging.

We went to a family cookout today, and I wanted to bring something really easy. We went to the pool earlier in the day, so I was short on time. Tastefully Simple to the rescue! Everyone loved this dip. Pretty sure it was gone within about a half hour.

Ingredients

1 envelope Tastefully Simple jalapeño popper dip mix
1 package cream cheese (8oz), softened
1 can corn, drained
1 cup monterey jack or cheddar cheese

Instructions

Combine all ingredients. Spread dip into a small baking dish. Bake at 350 until it’s hot and bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips.

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

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Cold, cold day today, and I spent several hours outside at the barn this afternoon. Soup was definitely a good choice to help me warm up when I got home.

Ingredients

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tbsp Tastefully Simple Wahoo! chili seasoning
1 jalapeno
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 chipotle pepper in adobo + about 2tsp of the sauce
28oz can diced tomatoes
3 cups frozen corn
2 tbsp butter
¼ cup masa harina
4 cups chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream
Monterey jack cheese
Tortilla strips (store bought or homemade)
Salt

Instructions

Dice onion and jalapeño (after removing seeds). Mince garlic. Rough chop chili. Don’t worry too much about having perfect knife skills because you’re just going to puree it all later.

Boil chicken breasts in a medium pot. Salt the water! Set the chicken aside when finished.

Melt butter in a dutch oven (or other large pot) over medium heat. Cook onions, jalapeño, garlic, & chipotle+sauce until the onions are translucent.

Add tomatoes and chili seasoning. Cook for a few minutes, then add chicken stock.

Use an immersion blender to puree everything in the pot. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender. Just be careful because hot/steamy stuff + blenders aren’t always a good combo.

Add the masa harina. Use the immersion blender to get rid of any chunks that form. This is a good time to taste it and add salt. Don’t worry if you think it’s too spicy right now. The cream will take care of that later. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.

Add the corn. (Get the tortilla strips in the oven now if you’re making them)

Pull or shred the chicken. I use the stand mixer for this. Toss the chicken in and use the beater on speed 2 for about 30-45 seconds. I always cover it with a towel because sometimes pieces like to fly out. You can also pull it with a fork instead.

Add the chicken to the soup. Stir in the heavy cream. Taste again, and add more salt if needed. Let it cook on low for about 10 more minutes.

Serve and garnish with the cheese and tortilla strips.

Tortilla Strips

Use a pizza cutter to cut tortillas into strips. I cut small tortillas into quarters, then cut into strips. You have two options – fry until golden, or bake. I baked these since they were going in soup. Coat in olive oil, season with salt. Line up the strips on a baking sheet and bake on 350 until golden.