King Ranch Chicken: Don't Call It A Casserole
Prep Time:
Cook Time:
Servings:
Ingredients
  • 2 chicken breasts, split and trimmed of fat
  • 2 tablespoon ancho chili powder
  • 2 tablespoon ground cumin
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 2 limes
  • 1 poblano pepper
  • 1 red bell pepper
  • one 10-ounce can ro*tel tomatoes
  • 4 roma tomatoes
  • olive oil
  • 1 red onion, minced
  • 5 cloves garlic, pressed
  • 1 jalapeño, minced
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 cup yogurt or low-fat sour cream
  • 1 cup can chopped green chiles
  • handful of cilantro, julienned
  • corn tortillas
  • 1 cup shredded low-fat mexican cheese blend
  • 1 avocado, pitted, peeled, and sliced thinly, for garnish
  • 4 radishes, sliced thinly, for garnish
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. If you have a grill, preheat on medium-high heat.
  2. Season the chicken with the ancho chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper, to taste, and a drizzle of lime juice. Then grill or bake. Depending on the thickness of the breasts this should take about 7 minutes on each side. Add the peppers and tomatoes to the grill and turn them every few minutes. Use 2 forks to shred the chicken, then set aside. Put the peppers in a bowl and cover them with plastic wrap until the skin peels off easily, for 10 minutes. Seed the peppers and tomatoes and chop them, then reserve for the sauce.
  3. For the sauce, warm some olive oil over medium-low heat in a sauté pan and sweat the onion, garlic, and jalapeño. When the onions become translucent, add the flour and mix well. Then, add the chicken stock and stir until incorporated and the sauce begins to thicken slightly. Reduce the heat to a simmer and mix in the yogurt or low-fat sour cream, peppers, tomatoes, and chopped green chiles. Remove from the heat.
  4. Spoon a light layer of the sauce on the bottom of the casserole dish just to coat it in order to prevent sticking. Tear the tortillas into bite-sized pieces. (If you’re using 3-inch-wide tortillas, just quarter them and then layer them evenly over the bottom of the dish.) Scatter the shredded chicken over the tortillas evenly, and then cover with the sauce. Scatter the shredded cheese evenly over the sauce then cover with another even layer of tortillas. Repeat for a second layer, ending with an even (and light!) coating of cheese on top.
  5. Place in the oven and bake until the cheese bubbles and turns brown on the sides, for about 20 minutes. Garnish with cilantro or micro-cilantro and a few slices of avocado and radish.