It’s rare to pass a restaurant, snack shop or street stall in the Central Mexican town of Puebla without detecting the alluring aroma of shredded pork with smoky chipotle chile, tomato and sweet onion. Tinga they call it, and they spoon it into soft tacos or crusty rolls. I like to serve tinga piled onto crispy tortillas (tostadas, tostaditas or totopos, they call them), then top it with the typical Pueblan avocado and cheese. Tingas are often made with chicken, and occasionally I go further afield, to shredded smoked fish or quail. They’re the perfect accompaniment to a well-made margarita.
24 small tostadas, enough for 6 to 8 guests
3/4 cup Chipotle-Cascabel Salsa
1/2 of a 15-ounce can whole tomatoes, with half the can’s juice
1 tablespoon vinegar, preferably cider vinegar
1 small white onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
2 cups (loosely packed) coarsely shredded, cooked chicken (I’d either poach, grill or broil a large chicken breast or buy a small rotisserie chicken to shred)
Salt, about 1/2 teaspoon
24 good-size corn tortillas chips, preferably homemade thick ones
1 small ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/8-inch pieces
3 to 4 tablespoons finely grated Mexican queso anejo, Parmesan or Romano Chopped cilantro, for garnish
Combine the salsa, tomatoes with their juice and the vinegar in a blender or food processor and puree. In a large skillet, cook the onion in the oil over medium heat until crisp-tender and just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Press the salsa mixture through a medium-mesh strainer into the skillet. Simmer, stirring regularly until quite thick, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken, cool, then taste and season with salt.
Arrange the chips on one or more serving platters. Top each with a heaping tablespoon of the chicken tinga, a few pieces of avocado, a sprinkling of cheese and cilantro, and they’re ready to pass around.
Recipe from Chef Rick Bayless