Its celebration time!! Yay… Cinco de Mayo is here… Get those margarita shots ready, put on your sombrero, get the music started coz S is here, and she likes nothing better than an excuse to party!!
Cinco de Mayo is quintessentially a Mexican celebration, and of course its widely popular in the United States, especially in the South. Cinco de Mayo is a holiday that’s celebrated on—wait for it—the fifth of May!
Okay, so you probably knew that Cinco de Mayo was on May 5. But what you might not know is that Cinco de Mayo—in all its celebratory Mexican glory—is largely celebrated to commemorate the surprising victory of the Mexican army over the French forces (whose numbers were double that of the Mexican troops) in a huge battle in a town called Puebla, in 1862. It was an unexpected victory and became the source of much excitement and pride, not just in Mexico, but also in America. This unexpected victory was celebrated by firing rifles into the air and singing patriotic songs, and helloo… of course by eating delicious Mexican khaana, and drinking way too many margaritas ..and dancing till wee hours of the morning.
Its recently become one of my favorite celebrations..mostly coz I would do anything for good Mexican food, and to dance and party.. but also coz I can’t NOT love anything where the underdogs come out as winners.
I have a few Cinco de mayo recipes I hope you will like..but if we are talking Mexican food, how can tequila be far behind..or tacos!!!??
So here’s what we are going to talk, deliberate, discuss and drool over now..
The grilled chicken can be served as a chicken platter for dinner with some blistered charred tomatoes, sautéed mushroom, glazed carrots, a herb pesto and the mango salsa over it.
S 🙂
RECIPE:
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Chicken breasts 2
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Tequila 1/4 cup
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Grated Cheese- 1/4 cup
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Shredded Lettuce – 1/2 cup
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Pickled Onion – 1 onion
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Dijon Mustard – 2 tbsp.
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Sriracha Sauce – 2-3 tbsp.
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Honey – 2 tsp
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Lime juice from 1 lemon
For the Taco seasoning:
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
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1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
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1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
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Diced mango – from 1 ripe mango
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Diced Red Pepper – 1/2 pepper
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Diced yellow pepper – 1/4th pepper (optional)
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Cilantro – 2 tbsp chopped fine
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Lemon Juice- 1/2 tsp
- 2 tbsp Mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp Sour Cream
- 2 tbsp cup Salsa
- 1 tsp tobasco sauce
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Lets start by marinating the chicken. You need to do this 4-6 hrs beforehand, so keep that in mind.
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Wash and pat dry the chicken breasts,
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Make the Taco seasoning.
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Directions:
- In a small bowl, mix together chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red pepper flakes, oregano, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Store in an airtight container.
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Mix the other ingredients under the spice rub in a bowl.
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Rub the breasts well with the spice rub making sure its coated well on both sides.
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Fire it up.. Really easy but you have to promise to be very very careful . Alcohol is highly inflammable and I suggest not having children around the kitchen when you do this. Keep an extinguisher close by, and a steel lid that fits the pan, just in case things go wrong.
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Which it wont, but its better to be safe than sorry.
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So take a saucepan, pour the tequila and put it over a flame. Let it flame out for 30 secs, remove from heat and let it cool for 2 mins. Next pout that on the chicken, and rub well into the meat.
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Cover and refrigerate till ready to use.
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When ready, preheat the oven or grill to 220C. Don’t forget to oil the grates well or the chicken will stick. Using tongs, add the chicken on the grill and let it grill for 8 mins on one side. Turn and grill for 7 mins on other side. Remove, tent with foil (cover it completely) and let it rest for 10 minutes before cutting.
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Bake for 2 -3 minutes or follow the instruction mentioned on the box.
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Stuff the lettuce really well into the shells.
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Add the shredded chicken, followed by cheese and some dressing. Top with the mango salsa, pickled onions , a drizzle of chilli mayo dressing and a sprinkling of crushed nachos if desired. Serve alongside salsa and margaritas for a perfect Cinco de Mayo dinner!!
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Enjoy 🙂
Gorgeous! If this tastes as good as it looks, my waistline is going to be in trouble. 🙂
Haha… Byron mine already is!!! But then , who cares about waist when the taste is as good? 😉
This looks yummy! I’ve always ordered it when we went out for Mexican. Perhaps now I can try making myself.
You must!! Its so much fun to make these 🙂 and it tastes Awesome!
Just wondering, where does the taco seasoning come in? The instructions say to make it and then put it in a tub…. But never to use it anywhere…? Tia