Chicken Chili Verde is a delicious, flavorful gluten-free dinner, cooked low and slow on the stovetop, and come together in under one hour.
It felt like our first real summer week. The sun was bright, the temperatures were warm, just the perfect time to be outdoors. We were out kayaking at the lake, walked the farmers market, bought some beautiful veggies, berries and and picked up tacos to make dinner. I know so many parts of the country are reaching some scorchingly high temps, but we’re just teetering in the mid 80s° F, so I am sure before we know it will be in the 100s.
My plan was to make a chicken stew with the poblano and tomatillos I bought from the market, later in the week my plan was to grill our favorite vegetables, with a good sauce + burrata, a delicious berry salad that I have been waiting to make for a while – all things to love. Then there are some easy appetizers, salads and salsas that will double as sides for grilled fish and chicken for the week of July 4th.
Light and comforting Chicken Chile Verde is a relatively easy and flavorful Mexican stew. Made with boneless skinless chicken thighs that is cooked with a green sauce made with fire roasted tomatillo, onion, poblano, garlic and jalapeño along with ground cumin, and Mexican oregano. It makes an amazing chicken stew served with rice, or poured over as green enchilada sauce+ cheese.
WHAT IS CHILE VERDE?
Chile Verde translate to “green chili” in Spanish. It’s a Mexican sauce made with fire roasted vegetables. that is blended with cilantro and a few herbs and spices to make an amazing sauce that can be used in so many different ways. For this recipe tender pieces of chicken thighs are cooked in a sauce made with charring tomatillo, onion, poblano, jalapeño chilles then blending to make a delicious tomatillo sauce. It’s comforting, a little spicy, a little tangy, and can be served as a salsa with tortilla chips, with rice, poured over enchiladas, its all good!
INGREDIENTS
- Chicken thighs – Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are best as they have great flavor without the meat drying out. Alternatively chicken breasts can be used but Ive noticed it can be dry.
- Tomatillos – This round green fruit resembles a green tomato with a papery outer skin. They’re not tomatoes but belong to the gooseberry family. Tomatillos are tart and tangy, used in salsas, sauces.
- Green chile peppers – We’re using 3 kinds of chili peppers. Jalapeño, Poblano and Serrano. Though serrano is optional if you’d like to keep it mild. Roasting them will give them a smoky flavor and will give a punch of heat.
- Onion and garlic – These adds body and so much flavor to the dish.
- Lime juice and cilantro – To add freshness, and herbaceous flavor.
TIPS FOR TASTY CHICKEN CHILE VERDE
- Broil the peppers and onions: Place the tomatillos, jalapeños, poblanos and serrano peppers If using) on a parchment lined baking sheet and broil on high. When the skins are lightly charred and blistered, flip, and broil for another 5 minutes.
- Steam and peeling the skins: Bring the veggies out the oven, place all the peppers in a bowl and cover with a plate or foil so they steam. Pull and peel off as much loose skin from the peppers as possible No need to peel all of it.
- Boil the tomatillos: Place the tomatillos in a pot covered with water. Bring it up to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. Drain and set aside.
- Make the green sauce: Add the roasted peppers and tomatillos, onions, garlic and half the cilantro to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Sear the chicken: Heat skillet or large pan and heat it. Add the olive and and the chicken over medium-high heat, season with salt. Sear it on all sides for about 20 minutes or until it’s browned.
- Simmer for 30 minutes: Pour the Chile verde, Add the oregano, ground cumin, water/ broth as needed. Mix it well, cover, simmer the stew for 30 minutes.
- Season and serve: Once the stew is done, stir in the lime juice and chopped cilantro. Adjust the seasoning as necessary. Serve!
Chicken Chile Verde
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Large sauce pan or skillet
Ingredients
- 12-16 oz fresh tomatillos
- 1½ lbs skinless boneless chicken thighs
- 2 medium poblanos
- 1-2 jalapeño or serrano deseed tea if necessary
- 1 large white or yellow onion, or 2 medium quartered
- 4 medium cloves garlic
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp Mexican oregano
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup chicken broth or water more or less as needed
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp ground black pepper
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- 2-3 tbsp lime juice
Garnishes
- Radish
- Avocado
- cooked basmati rice or long grain rice to serve
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, place the quartered onion, tomatillos, jalapenos, poblanos, and serrano peppers. Place the sheet directly underneath the broiler and turn the broiler on medium high.
- Broil for 5-7 minutes, or until the skin has charred and blistered. Carefully flip over the tomatillos and peppers and broil for another 5 minutes, or until the skin has charred and blistered on all sides. Remove from the oven, transfer the peppers to a bowl and cover with a plate to keep in some of the heat so the skin of the peppers steam and come loose. Peel the skin off the peppers as much as possible. You can remove the seeds from the peppers if you prefer mild. Add the charred tomatillos, peppers, onions, garlic and ½ the cilantro to a blender. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
- Warm olive oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and season with salt. Sear the chicken turning occasionally, until the pieces are browed about 10-12 minutes.
- Pour in the chile verde sauce, add ground cumin, Mexican oregano and broth/water. Mix thoroughly. Cover, bring the heat to a simmer a cook for 15 minutes or until the chicken has cooked through. Add the lime juice, cilantro and stir to combine. Taste and season with more salt if necessary.
- Serve with cooked rice, a little salad, or with warmed tortillas.
I could not find the amount of chicken needed in the ingredient list.
any help please. I want to try this recipe!
Hi Joseph, Sorry I missed that, it’s updated now. I used about 1½ pounds skinless boneless chicken thighs. Hope you enjoy the recipe and thanks for noticing that.