Roasted Chicken Tacos with Mexican Gravy

This weekend, the hubs decided that he was going to buy more tomatoes (because canning 120 pounds of them wasn't enough) in order to try making his own salsa for the first time. It went well, although I think next year we will be making some changes to the recipe. In any event, we wanted to make a dinner dish in order to highlight the salsa and settled on trying to replicate our favorite Mexican restaurant's chicken that they put into their tamales, tacos, enchiladas, etc. The chicken is always so moist, and their seasoning of it is perfect. We obviously don't know the secrets to their sauces and seasoning, but the hubs is pretty good spices and came up with this close - and delicious - mix. We particularly like roasting whole chickens as you tend to get more meat, the price per pound is cheaper, and the meat stays juicier. This also allows you to keep all the juices to make gravy or other sauces with, which is an added bonus. We will definitely keep this method of making taco meat in our recipe-box, and hopefully will branch out from tacos to other entrees to highlight the meat in the future. 

Enjoy! 

Roasted Chicken Tacos with Mexican Gravy

Ingredients

For the spice mixture:

2 Tablespoons chili powder 

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 

1/2 teaspoon onion powder 

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon paprika

1 Tablespoon cumin 

1 teaspoon celery seed 

2 teaspoons salt 

2 teaspoons black pepper 

For the chicken:

1 whole chicken (4 pounds about), fresh or thawed 

1/4 cup of canola or grapeseed oil

2 1/2 cup water 

thickening agent (flour, potato starch, corn starch)

Directions: 

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees 

2. Loosen the skin of the chicken with the back of a wooden spoon. Smear 1/4 cup of canola or grapeseed oil under and on top of the skin. Take 1/2 of the spice mixture and rub it under and on top of the skin.

3. Place the spiced-up chicken in a dutch oven and pour water into the base so that there is about an inch of water under the bird. Cover the dutch oven with a lid and close the oven door (you want to steam cook the bird). 

4. Bake for about  hour 15 minutes (or per the directions with the bird) or until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 165. Would recommend flipping the bird half way through the cooking process. 

5. Take the chicken out of the oven when done. Remove the chicken from the dutch oven, draining any liquid from the cavity of the chicken back into the dutch oven. (Save this liquid for below. Do not discard.) Place the chicken on a plate, cooling rack, or bowl and allow it to cool some until it's at a comfortable enough temperature for you to start to remove the meat from the chicken with your hands. 

6. When it is cool enough, remove the skin from the bird and then use your hands to remove the pieces of the meat from all parts of the bird and place it in a separate bowl. Shred any larger pieces of meat with two forks. 

7. Toss the newly shredded meat with the remaining spice seasoning. 

8. Place the dutch oven with the seasoned drippings from the bird on the stovetop. Turn the heat to medium-high, and allow it to come to a soft boil. Once boiling, whisk in your choice of thickening agent (we use Egg-replacer, which is a potato starch and tapioca start based thickener, but you could also use either potato starch, corn starch, or about 1/4-1/3 cup flour mixed with 1/4-1/3 cup water). Whisk this until the gravy is thickened. Don't worry about bits of chicken in the gravy (yum!). Salt to taste. 

9. Assemble your tacos with your choice of sides:  Guacamole, salsa, onions, peppers, tomatoes, lettuce (or other greens), and/or sour cream. Use the gravy inside the tacos or drizzled over multiple tacos for presentation. 

Wild Rice Salad

Several months ago the hubs and I went to a local museum, where they were highlighting a chef who works for a neighborhood food kitchen. He has brought nutricious, delicious, and free (!) lunches to an area of town that was a healthy food desert. He made this salad to highlight our local Minnesota wild rice, which was so delicious. 

There are many types of wild rice that are commercially available, but we have found that the rice harvested by hand from the northern river beds of Minnesota is the best. Many of the local native tribes are active in the harvest and selling of the rice, which is fun. The native rice cooks the fastest and has the best flavor. We really fell in love with this salad and now make it - and versions of it - frequently at home. Enjoy! 



(Minnesota) Wild Rice Salad

Ingredients

1.5 cups wild rice 
4 cups water 
(1 broth cube)
1 carrot 
1 onion 
3 large swiss chard leaves (or spinach)
1/3 cup chopped mixed nuts (preferably walnuts, almonds, or pecans)
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
1/4 cup raisins, dried cherries, or other fruit

Dressing

1 cup cilanto (1/2 bunch)
1/2 cup olive oil 
3 Tablespoons champagne vinegar 
3 cloves garlic 
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 Tablespoon agave syrup (or maple syrup)
1 teaspoon mustard (stone ground)

Directions

1.) 2-3 hours ahead of time, cook the rice in the water with a broth cube (optional). To do this, bring the rice, water, and broth cube to a boil in a large sized pan. Once it comes to a boil, turn down and cover. Cook on low until the rice is fluffy and soft (how long depends on the rice). Drain any extra water. Place the rice in a medium sized bowl and allow it to sit at room temperature until it's completely cooled. Then, fluff. We have found that putting it in the fridge works against the consistency of the rice and instead we just let it cool to room temperature on the counter. 
2.) 30 minutes or so before wanting to serve the dish, Chop the onion into 1 centimeter pieces. Place some canola or olive oil in a saute pan and over low-to-medium heat, sautee the onions until they are soft, brown, and somewhat sweet. Then, place them aside. Grate/shave the carrot into small pieces. Roll the swiss chard leaves length-wise into a little tube and chop/slice the tube into little strips (chiffonade-style). Chop the nuts. 
3.) Make the dressing by combining all ingredients in a bowl and then mixing with an electric mixer or - even better - an immersion blender until a dressing is made. The most important part of the dressing is keeping the oil to vinegar ratio 3:1 and putting in mustard to help as an emulsifyer. The other ingredients can be played with as you like. 
4.) Assemble the salad by combining the rice, veggies, dried fruit, and nuts. Pour over the dressing and stir all together.