Chicken Chili Verde Three Ways
Did you know you can mix up your mealtimes while using your same favorite recipes? With small adjustments, one recipe can provide a variety of meals. Here’s an example of a delicious recipe and how it can be altered to provide you with several dinner ideas!
Chicken Chili Verde
- 1 lb. chicken
- 2 tablespoons oil (vegetable or olive)
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 garlic cloves, minced or 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 can (7 oz.) green chilies or ½ cup roasted chili peppers
- 2 cups water or chicken broth
Make it a Burrito
Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. In a medium saucepan, brown chicken in 1 tablespoon oil. Add remaining oil and flour. Stir constantly until flour browns. Stir in garlic, cumin, and salt. Mix in chilies and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until chicken is tender and sauce thickens, 30-45 minutes, adding more water to thin if necessary.
Serve in tortilla shells; top with cheese or other desired toppings.
You can also serve it over rice.
Make it a Soup
Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. In a saucepan, brown chicken in 1 tablespoon oil.
In a separate medium saucepan, combine 1 tablespoon oil with the flour. Stir constantly until flour browns. Slowly add chicken broth or water, whisking until smooth. Stir in chicken, garlic, cumin, salt, and chilies. Add more liquid, as needed, to reach the desired consistency of soup broth. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until chicken is tender. If soup is too thin, simmer sauce until thickened. If soup is too thick, add more water.
Soup can be topped with cheese and sour cream if desired.
Make it a Salsa/Dip
Cut chicken into bite-sized pieces. In a medium saucepan, brown chicken in 1 tablespoon oil. Add remaining oil and flour. Stir constantly until flour browns. Stir in garlic, cumin, and salt. Mix in chilies and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until chicken is tender. This is where personal preference comes in: if you like salsa/dip to be chunkier, simmer for a longer amount of time, until it has reached the desired thickness. If you like salsa/dip to be runnier, add more liquid as needed, simmering for less time until it has reached the desired thickness.
Serve with chips as a side dish.
This article was written by Kelsey Chappell, Family and Consumer Sciences Intern, and Melanie Jewkes, Utah State University Extension associate professor, Salt Lake County