Chicken Tacos

This is one more recipe that is inspired from iron chef, Jose Garces who has a huge presence in Philadelphia.  This recipe combines a delicious mix of several fresh and healthy ingredients.  The use of chayote adds an extra crunch and chillies gives an extra kick while the avocado and cucumber give the desired cooling.  I customized this by adding habanero curry powder to the chicken which adds to the boldness of the heat!!

 

Ingredients:

Cube Chicken - 1 pound, 1 bell pepper, 1 onion, 1 teaspoon habanero curry powder, 1 teaspoon corn starch, salt to taste,

Corn Tortillas (6 inch)-12 ea

Chayote and Cucumber Salad- see recipe

Chile Sauce – see recipe

Avocado Espuma – see recipe

Chayote & Cucumber Salad Recipe

Chayote-1 ea, julienne

Cucumber-1 ea, julienne

Lime Juice-2 ea, fresh squeezed

Cilantro-1/4 bunch, chopped

Extra Virgin Olive Oil-2 Tbs

Preparation:

Combine all the above ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Season with salt and reserve for taco.

Chile Sauce Recipe

Dried Red Chiles-10 ea, remove stem, toasted

Onion-1/2 ea, medium dice

Plum Tomato-2 ea, rough chopped

Garlic-1 ea, clove

Cumin Seeds-1 tsp, toasted

Fennel seeds-5 ea, toasted

Sesame Seeds-2 tbs, toasted

Apple Cider Vinegar- 2 tbs

Water-1 ½ c

Vegetable Oil-2 Tbs

Salt-1 tbs

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients except for salt and oil, in a pot and reduce by ½. Puree in a blender and emulsify with oil. Season with salt.

Avocado Espuma Recipe

Avocado-1/2 ea, peeled and chopped

Jalapeño-1/2 ea, peeled and chopped

Cilantro-1/4 bunch, just leaves

Lemon Juice-1 ½ tsp, fresh squeezed

Light Cream-1/4 cup

Sugar-1/2 tsp

Salt-1 tbs

Preparation:

Puree in a blender and refrigerate till ready for use.

Assembling the taco:

Stir fry finely chopped bell pepper (1 ea), onion (1 ea) in oil for 5 minutes at high heat.  Coat chicken cubes with corn starch, salt and stir fry chicken for 5 minutes at high heat.   Mix both chicken and vegetables and stir fry for 2 minutes at high heat after adding habanero curry powder. 

Warm the corn tortillas on a pan, about 30 seconds on each side at medium heat.

Spread 1 tbs of the avocado espuma on the bottom of the tortillas. Lay 1 teaspoon of chicken on the spread. Add a desired amount of the chayote-cucumber salad on top. Finish with a tsp of the chile de arbol sauce and serve.