🌮 Delicious slow-cooked chicken tacos made with our tantalizing Taco Temptation seasoning blend gives your tacos a whole new dimension. Next level! The chicken, tender from hours of slow cooking, is infused with rich, robust flavors from a mix of smoky paprika, aromatic cumin, tangy lime, and a hint of chili spice. Each bite delivers a perfect balance of savory and bright notes, wrapped in soft, warm tortillas and often topped with fresh cilantro, crisp onions, and a squeeze of lime for an irresistible street food delight.
We love these Taco Temptation Street Tacos so much that we have made it four times in the same number of weeks! The chicken thighs are first browned with our proprietary Taco Temptation spice blend. Then, we slow cook them in a Dutch oven for about 2 1/2 hours until they are fall-off-the-bone tender. The kitchen smells so delicious as these are cooking in the oven and before you know it, it’s taco time! Top this tantalizing chicken with all of the fixings — shredded cabbage, diced tomatoes, cheese, cilantro, sliced radishes, jalapeños, lime wedges and guacamole. Lots of guacamole! We also just used this same chicken in our chicken enchiladas and are really excited about that too! So tasty!
What kind of chili powder is best for Taco Temptation?
We use New Mexico chili powder in our spice blend, because it has mild heat, but such a beautifully robust and slightly smoky chili flavor. Not surprisingly, New Mexico chili powder derives from the New Mexican Chile, which was first grown by the Pueblo and other Hispanic groups throughout the state of New Mexico. The New Mexico chili grows from a green pepper to a ripened red, and while the flavor is retained, the heat mellows in the drying process. There are many different strains of the New Mexico chili, but allegedly the most prized peppers are grown in the Hatch Valley area along the Rio Grande.
Taco Temptation Street Tacos
Equipment
- 1 Dutch Oven
Ingredients
Slow-Cooked Taco Temptation Chicken Thighs
- 1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
- 10 bone-in or boneless chicken thighs
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 4 tsp. Taco Temptation seasoning blend
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 2 tsp. fresh lime juice
Taco Fixins’
- 12 tortillas (corn or chicken – your choice)
- 1 cup grated mixed Mexican cheese (or crumble Cotija cheese)
- 2 cups finley shredded green cabbage
- 1 jalapeno, seeded, stem removed and finely diced
- 2 large tomatoes, diced
- 6 radishes, thinly sliced
- 1 cup cilantro leaves (loosely packed)
- 2 limes, cut into 12 wedges
- 1 cup salsa
- 1 batch guacamole
Instructions
Slow-Cooked Chicken
- Preheat oven to 250 F. Get a Dutch oven or cast-iron pot with a tight-fitting lid ready. You will cook the chicken in this pot.
- Rub chicken thighs, top and bottom, with half of the Taco Temptation spice blend. Heat oil, a little bit at at time, and sauté onions until translucent. Sprinkle 1-2 tsp. of the rub over onions and continue to cook for another two minutes. Remove onions from pan and place in the Dutch oven. Set aside.
- Heat more oil in the pan, and working in batches, brown the chicken thighs on both sides until very aromatic and golden brown. Remove thighs and place on top of the onions in the Dutch oven. Add about 1 cup of water to the frying pan to deglaze, scraping up any bits of chicken, onions, and spices. Pour the deglazed pan scrapings, along with the chicken broth and lime juice over the top, cover and bake for 2 ½ hours, or until very tender. Remove from oven and cool enough to handle.
- Using two forks, shred the chicken and put the shredded chicken back into the broth that is still in the Dutch oven. Cover and refrigerate until ready to heat and serve.
- This step can be done several days ahead of time, and in fact, the chicken is even better if it has a couple of days to sit back in the juices.
- When ready to serve, reheat chicken in the Dutch oven at about 300 F for 30 minutes or so. Heat tortillas in the oven, on a cast iron or over the grill. Serve with shredded chicken thighs, grated cheese and garnish with all of the garnishes you love to have with your tacos!