Chicken Veracruz Style Recipes

CHICKEN VERACRUZ

Steps:

• 1. Place chicken breast between plastic wrap sheets; using mallet, pound chicken to ¼" thickness; repeat with remaining breasts. Season chicken with adobo. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook until light golden brown on both sides, flipping once, about 7 minutes; set aside.
• 2. Add onions; cook until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and oregano to pan; cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds more. Add tomato sauce, 1 cup water, olives, capers, bay leaf and jalapenos to pan; bring tomato sauce mixture to boil.
• 3. Transfer chicken to pan; cook, flipping once, until coated in sauce and cooked through, about 15 minutes more. Remove chicken from pan; stir remaining oil into tomato sauce mixture.
• 4. To serve, divide chicken and sauce evenly among serving dishes; sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with rice and lime wedge.

BAKED CHICKEN VERACRUZ

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees with rack in upper third. Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Toss potatoes with 2 tablespoons oil; season with salt and pepper. Arrange, shingled, in a shallow 9-by-13-inch baking dish; bake until just tender and edges are golden, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Stir together tomatoes, cinnamon, and oregano; season with salt and pepper. Pour mixture over potatoes; scatter with olives, shallots, and oregano sprigs. Top with chicken and drizzle with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Bake until chicken is browned and crisp and a thermometer inserted into thickest parts (without touching bones) reaches 165 degrees, about 25 minutes. Serve.

CHICKEN VERACRUZ

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large deep skillet over high heat. Pat the chicken dry and sprinkle with the oregano and 1 teaspoon salt. Sear the chicken until well browned, about 7 minutes per side. Meanwhile, slice the poblano into strips and thinly slice the onion. Cut the tomato into 8 wedges and smash the garlic. Once the chicken is browned, scatter the poblano, onion, tomato, garlic, jalapenos and olives over and around the chicken. Cook until the vegetables begin to soften slightly, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Add the wine and bring to a boil; cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are soft, about 10 minutes. Serve the chicken with the vegetables.

CHICKEN A LA VERACRUZANA TACOS

Steps:

• Add the oil to a pot and heat. Add and saute the sliced onions, peppers, garlic and chili flakes until translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the salt and canned tomatoes. Cook down the excess tomato water at a low simmer, 10 to 15 minutes. Add the olives and capers and cook for another 5 minutes, still at a low simmer. Add the epazote and 1 tablespoon cilantro. Cook another minute. Add the shredded chicken to the sauce; simmer for another minute.
• Mix together the chopped onion and remaining 4 tablespoons cilantro. Heat up your tortillas, stuff with chicken and top with the onion and cilantro mix. Serve with a wedge of lime.

VERACRUZANA CHICKEN STEW WITH WINTER SQUASH

Steps:

• Preheat the broiler. Line a small baking sheet or a pie tin with foil and place the onion and garlic on it. Place under the broiler, close to the heat. Broil for 2 minutes and check. As soon as the garlic skin is charred, remove the cloves and set aside. Turn the onion, using tongs, and continue to broil, turning often, until it is charred and softened, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.
• Peel the garlic and transfer to a blender with the onion and tomatoes (do this in 2 batches if your blender is small). Blend until smooth.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium-high heat in a deep lidded frying pan or a heavy casserole. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and brown for 5 minutes on each side, in batches if necessary. Transfer to a bowl. Pour off the fat from the pan.
• Keep the heat high and add the remaining olive oil. Add the blended tomato mixture to the pan all at once. It should sear and splutter. Cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes, until the mixture thickens noticeably, then add 1/2 cup of the stock and salt to taste. Turn the heat down to low and simmer, stirring from time to time, for 15 minutes. Stir in the remaining chicken broth.
• Return the chicken pieces to the sauce, along with any liquid that has accumulated in the bowl. Add the olives, capers, raisins, rosemary, oregano, cinnamon stick, bay leaf, cayenne and squash and bring back to a simmer. Season to taste with salt and pepper, cover and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, or until the chicken and squash are tender. Stir in the sherry, if desired, and continue to simmer for another 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with rice or other grains.