Mexican Chicken in the Slow Cooker

The Slow Cooker is often put away in the cupboard over the summer, in the Slow Cooker Challenge for July I have challenged my readers to get that Crockpot or Slow Cooker out of the cupboard and make a summery dish to enjoy after a day out.  Let's face it we are more likely to be away all day to the beach, the park or other attraction over the summer months and it's so nice to come home to a meal that's ready as soon as you walk in the door.

This recipe for Mexican Chicken Drumsticks comes from The Slow Cooker Cookbook by Gina Steer which is reviewed on the Slow Cooker Challenge post.  I used chicken thighs rather than drumsticks but either would work just as well. The chicken was soft and fell off the bone and the sauce was rich with an intense tomato, chilli flavour.  Highly recommended.



Mexican Chicken
Serves 4

4-8 chicken drumsticks or thighs, skinned
1tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2-4 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 red serrano chilli, seeded and chopped
1 tbsp plain flour
1 tbsp tomato puree
475ml (16 fl oz) chicken stock
4 tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 squares (50g)/1 3/4oz) bitter chocolate
salt and freshly ground pepper
2tbsp sesame seeds
Lime wedges
Cooked rice and tossed green salad, to serve

Preheat the slow cooker on high. Lightly rinse or wipe the chicken drumsticks and pat dry on kitchen roll.  Heat the oil and butter in a frying pan, brown the drumsticks on all sides, drain and place in the cooking pot.

Add the onion, garlic and chilli to the frying pan and saute for 5 minutes or until softened. Sprinkle in the flour and cook for 2 minutes, then take off the heat.  Blend the tomato puree with a tablespoons of the stock and gradually stir into the pan with the remaining stock and the chopped tomatoes.  Add the chocolate with seasoning and bring to the boil  Cook, stirring until the sauce has thickened slightly, then pour over the drumsticks.  Cook on high for 3-5 hours. Remove from the cooker, adjust the seasoning of the sauce then pour over the chicken.  Sprinkle with the sesame seeds, garnish with lime wedges and serve with freshly cooked rice and a green salad.

I served my chicken with couscous and roasted peppers, courgettes and onions.



You can win a copy of The Slow Cooker Cookbook by Gina Steer on the Slow Cooker Challenge post entries open until 28th July, 2014. 

Labels: Chicken, chilli, crockpot, mexican, slow cooker, Slow Cooker Challenge

posted by Janice @ 21:20 10 Comments

Mexican 'Tortilla' Bake

It's surprising how many eggs seem to accumulate when you are not baking, so as soon as the oven was back in service I had to find a way to use them.  I'm sure you are probably wondering why I didn't just stop buying them,  but they are hand delivered to my husband by the woman who keeps them and works alongside him, so it would be rude not to buy them each week, don't you think?



So what to do with them, hmm let's have a look in the fridge and see what is there... oh yes, some mini peppers and a courgette, dice and slice them and add a tablespoon of oil then roast in the oven at 180C for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables have started to soften and blacken round the edges.

Now what else can I add...some leftover lamb chopped into pieces and a packet of ready cooked rice, you don't need to add the rice but it does make it more substantial.

Beat five eggs with 1/2 teaspoon of sweet smoked paprika and mix through the other ingredients.

Grated cheese on top is optional, but a nice finish.  Put back into the oven to bake for about 30 minutes or until set in the middle.  Serve with salad.

I'm entering my Mexican Tortilla for The Spice Trail run by Vanesther at Bangers and Mash as the challenge is celebrating Mexican food this month.

I'm also adding this to the No Waste Food Challenge as I used up some extra eggs, random veg from the fridge and leftover roast lamb. It is run by Elizabeth at Elizabeth's Kitchen Diary and hosted this month at JibberJabberUK

Labels: eggs, mexican, smoked paprika, the spice trail, tortilla

posted by Janice @ 20:58 26 Comments

Lamb Steaks with Adobo Seasoning

The theme for May's Sweet Heat Challenge is 'Mexican'.  I love mexican food and have several Mexican cook books.  I decided to try something different that I had never made before and chose an Adobo Seasoning which I adapted as a marinade for lamb steaks.

The Sweet Heat Challenge is hosted this month by Souperior, it's usual home being Lyndsey Fleenor's Vanilla Clouds and Lemon Drops.

Adobo Seasoning

 Ingredients
3 cloves of garlic crushed
3 hot chillis, deseeded and chopped
1tbsp dried oregano
1 tsp cumin seeds
6 cloves or 1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
120ml white wine vinegar
3 lamb steaks
1tbsp sunflower oil

1. Put the chillies and garlic in a blender or mortar.  Add the oregano, cum seeds, cloves, coriander seeds cinnamon aand salt.  Process or grind with a pestle to a rough powder, add the vinegar and blend again.


Cover the lamb steaks with the marinade cover with cling film and leave to marinade for 3- 4 hours.

Heat the oil in a pan and sear the steaks, then turn down the heat, add the rest of the marinade and cook for about 10 minutes until the lamb is cooked through.

 Although hot, this wasn't overpowering and the flavours are totally delicious and a very different type of Mexican food from the standard chilli con carne, fajitas and other various tortilla based dishes.

Labels: chilli, garlic, lamb, mexican, Sweet Heat, Vanilla Clouds and Lemon Drops, white wine vinegar

posted by Janice @ 21:27 1 Comments

Chocolate Chilli Con Carne

Let's pretend that I had read the instructions properly for the February 'We should Cocoa', if I had, then I would have made this recipe with quorn mince or some other suitable vegetarian alternative.  However, sadly that is simply not the case, so if I am disqualified for using beef mince, so be it!


3. Add salt to taste, then add the kidney beans and the four squares of chocolate and let them melt into the mixture.
4. Just before serving add some fresh chopped coriander and stir through.

Serve with rice, I used brown basmati rice, topping the chilli with sour cream or yogurt, some chopped spring onions and chopped coriander.

I enjoyed this chilli, the chocolate adds a depth of flavour, ours was pretty hot as I left the seeds in the chillis, I always find fresh chillis quite difficult to judge and either end up with not enough or too much heat!

Labels: chilli, chocolate, coriander, kidney beans, mexican, rice, We should Cocoa

posted by Janice @ 22:32 16 Comments