TODAY Food Club

If you’re craving some south-of-the-border flavor, you’ve come to the right place. I love any excuse to eat tacos and with Cinco de Mayo just a few days away I had the perfect excuse to make these Zesty Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa. Spicy shredded chicken is topped with a crunchy purple cabbage slaw, pineapple salsa and a drizzle of avocado cream that is so flavorful and delicious you’ll definitely be going back for seconds, and maybe even thirds. These tacos have quite the kick with jalapeño, but the pineapple salsa topping helps to cool them down. Pineapple salsa is a fun twist on the traditional tomato variety, and this recipe is great for a quick and simple weeknight dinner or for entertaining company. Although this ingredient list may seem a bit long the recipe is fairly simple, and comes together rather quickly. While the chicken is cooking I make up the pineapple salsa and the avocado cream. It’s all about multi-tasking! A few years ago, my family and I drove down the California coast one one of our favorite stops was La Jolla, where we strolled around town and stumbled upon a Mexican restaurant with great food and breathtaking views of the Pacific ocean. I don’t know if it was the scenery, the margaritas, or the fact that we were on vacation, but the tacos were out of this world. To recreate them at home, I came up with this version and I’m happy to say they come pretty darn close!

Zesty Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa

Ingredients

• Flour or corn tortillas
• Limes, for garnish
• Fresh cilantro, for garnish
• 1 head of purple cabbage, sliced thin
• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 pinch ground cumin
• 1 pinch chili powder
• ¼ cup tomato salsa
• 2 cups diced pineapple
• ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and finely choppe
• Zest and juice of 1 lime
• ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1 avocado
• 4 tablespoons sour cream
• Juice from ½ a lime

Preparation

1. Place chicken breasts into a saucepan and pour in enough water to cover. Place over medium heat, bring to a boil, and simmer until chicken meat is no longer pink, 10 to 12 minutes.
2. Transfer chicken breasts to a bowl, allow to cool, and shred the chicken meat with 2 forks.
3. Heat vegetable oil in a small non-stick saucepan over medium heat, and mix in the shredded chicken, cumin, chili powder, and salsa; bring to a boil.
4. Reduce heat to low and simmer until chicken is hot and the flavors have blended, about 3 minutes.
5. While the chicken is cooking make the salsa. In a medium sized bowl add the pineapple, cilantro, red onion, jalapeño pepper, lime juice and lime vest. Mix until well combined.
6. To make the avocado cream, in a blender blend the avocado, sour cream and juice from ½ a lime and blend until smooth. Add more lime juice if the consistency is too thick.
7. To assemble the tacos, place chicken on top of tortillas, top with pineapple salsa, shredded cabbage and drizzle with avocado cream. Serve with fresh limes and chopped cilantro.

Recipe Tags

• Easy
• Mexican
• Entree