Do you ever make a recipe and then wonder how you’ve lived your whole life without it?
This is one of those meals for me.
So many of my favorite things all in one place – chipotle chicken marinade! beer-braised meat! avocado-lime crema! TACOS!
I genuinely don’t know what I did before this.
Something I like a lot about this recipe in particular is that your whole taco (minus the crema) is all in one pot. I’m a fan of the taco topping smorgasbord, but every now and then, it’s nice to enjoy taco night without needing to prepare the usual tomatoes, onions, lettuce, cheese, sour cream, etc.
For these tacos, you just cook your chipotle chicken together with peppers and onions in beer, slap it all into a tortilla, and douse in avo-lime crema.
It’s gotta be the most low-key way to have a taco.
Beer-Braised Chipotle Chicken Tacos with Avocado-Lime Crema
Shredded chipotle chicken cooked in beer with peppers and onions for the easiest taco night you'll ever have! Top it all off with avocado-lime crema.
Ingredients
For the tacos:
- 1 recipe chipotle marinade, divided (see below)
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 8 mini bell peppers, sliced into rings
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 1/2 cup beer
For serving: Tortillas, chopped cilantro, chopped scallions
For the marinade:
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup chipotles in adobo
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
For the avocado crema:
- 1 ripe avocado
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
Blend together all marinade ingredients until smooth. Pour 3/4 cup of the marinade over the chicken to coat and marinate at least an hour, up to overnight. Refrigerate the remaining marinade in a separate container.
When ready to cook, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet with high sides. Remove chicken from marinade and place in skillet. Cook, partially covered, for 8 minutes per side, until browned. Remove to plate and set aside. Add remaining tablespoon olive oil to pan. Once hot, add sliced peppers and onions. Cook, stirring often, until softened – about 5 minutes. Stir in reserved marinade. Return chicken to pan on top of onion and pepper mixture. Add beer to skillet and bring mixture to boil. Reduce heat to simmer. Cover partially and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet and shred. Return shredded chicken to skillet and stir to combine.
Serve in tortillas topped with avocado-lime crema.
Avocado crema: Add ingredients to a food processor or small blender, and blend until smooth. Add water if needed to get the desired consistency. Adjust seasoning to taste.
