Mexican Chicken Chili

A hearty meal that comes together quickly (if you've got your chicken already roasted, that is*).

Mexican Chicken Chili
2 Tbsp EVOO
1 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 serrano pepper, seeded & minced
2 Tbsp chipotle paste (or one minced canned chipotle pepper with adobo sauce)
1 small can petite diced tomatoes (NOT drained)
1 can corn, drained
2 cans beans, drained (I used one can black beans and one can cannellini beans)
2 roasted chicken breasts, meat shredded
1-2 c chicken stock
salt & pepper

For serving:
Tortilla chips
Chopped green onions
Chopped fresh cilantro
Sour cream
Shredded cheese

Heat a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat and add the olive oil. Saute the onions for about 4-5 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic, serrano pepper, chipotle paste (or chipotle pepper) and season with salt & pepper. Add the can of diced tomatoes (this is a regular-size can, not the big cans of tomatoes, although you could use one of those if you wanted it more tomato-y), the corn, beans, and the shredded cooked chicken. Pour in just enough stock to barely cover everything - it shouldn't take too much as you've also used the liquid from the can of tomatoes. Heat everything through, and then serve with whatever toppings you like. I put chips in the bottom of the bowl and ladled the chili on top, then topped it with cheese, sour cream, cilantro and green onions. Yum!

This is even better the next day, after the flavors get a chance to blend together even more.

*Note: I generally get chicken breasts bone-in and skin-on (on sale at Safeway this week!) and roast them with olive oil, salt & pepper at 400 for about 45 minutes -- until the thermometer beeps & tells me they're done. The chicken is much more juicy when you cook it this way than if you roast a skinless, boneless chicken breast. Then I remove the meat and put it in a plastic container & stick it in the fridge for quick meals during the week. It really simplifies weeknight cooking.

Irish Beef Stew

In honor of the holiday, I made a lovely beef stew with Guinness yesterday for Mr Wonderful to take to his potluck party at work today. The worst part about it is that I don't get to have any! This holiday-appropriate veggie-laden stew will be my contribution to Sweetnicks' ARF/5-a-day roundup this week.

Irish Beef Stew
1/4 c EVOO
1 onion, diced fairly large
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 carrots, chopped into large chunks
2 huge russet potatoes, cut into 2" dice
1 1/4 lb beef stew meat, cut into about 2" dice
1/2 c flour, divided
1 Tbsp fresh thyme
1 bottle Guinness beer
4 c beef stock
1 bay leaf
4 Tbsp butter (half stick)
salt & pepper

In a large pot or dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, carrots, and potatoes. Season well with salt & pepper. Saute for a few minutes to give the veggies color (they will be very, very undercooked), and then remove from the pot. Salt & pepper the beef and shake it in a ziploc bag filled with 1/4 c of the flour, until the meat is all coated. Saute the meat in batches, until it's lightly browned on all sides. When the meat is all browned, return everything to the pot (including veggies), and add the thyme and Guinness. Scrape the bottom of the pot to get all the browned bits up while the alcohol cooks out, then add in the beef stock and the bay leaf. Raise the heat, bringing the stew to a simmer, then reduce back to medium-low and cook for about 20 minutes, until the potatoes are done. If the stew hasn't thickened enough, you can make a quick roux to thicken it (I needed to do this): melt the half-stick of butter in a pan, then add a 1/4 c of flour. Let the mixture cook for a minute or two, then add the roux, a spoonful at a time, to the stew and stir well to combine. Let the mixture bubble away for a few minutes before you add more of the roux - it takes a few minutes to thicken up. (I only needed to add about half of the roux mixture to get my stew to the right consistency.)

Serve with Irish soda bread or some other nice fresh, dense, crusty bread.