Mexican Chicken And Polenta Recipes

Steps:

• Place chicken in a large skillet and cover with water; add chopped cilantro, oregano, onion and peeled clove of garlic.
• Cook chicken breasts over medium heat about 10 to 15 minutes; chicken should no longer be pink in center; remove chicken from pan and let cool; reserve liquid.
• Add ancho peppers to the reserved liquid in pan; cover and soak about 10 minutes (no heat on pan); drain liquid into a bowl.
• (Sometimes, I add the whole ancho to the pand and seed after they are softened.) Shred cooled chicken and set aside.
• Place peppers, garlic, tomato sauce and cumin in blender and blend on high until smooth, about 2 minutes; if you have an immersion blender you can add everything to the pan and blend.
• Pour mixture into a saucepan, add chicken and heat through about 3 or 4 minutes; use drained poaching liquid to thin a bit if it seems too dry.
• To make polenta, bring water to a boil; add salt.
• Add about 1/2 cup of the water to the cornmeal to make a paste or slurry; Slowly add cornmeal slurry to the boiling water, stirring until smooth; after 10 minutes add Splenda and corn kernels; cook another 3 to 5 minutes.
• Spoon 1/4 of the cooked polenta onto the serving plate; top with 1/4 of chicken and chili mixture; garnish with additional cilantro (optional) or chopped scallions (optional).
• OR If you prefer polenta wedges, coat a 9 x 9-inch pan with cooking spray and pour polenta into pan; smooth with a spatula; let polenta to firm up, about 3 minutes; cut into quarters and remove from pan.
• Place polenta slices in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray; cook on both sides until crispy, about 2 to 4 minutes per side.
• Place polenta wedge onto the serving plate; top with 1/4 of chicken and chili mixture; garnish with additional cilantro (optional) or chopped scallions (optional).

Steps:

• Invert a large cast-iron skillet and wrap the bottom with foil; set aside. Toss the chicken with 1 tablespoon olive oil, the garlic, rosemary, red pepper flakes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Let stand 10 minutes.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and top with the foil-wrapped skillet. Cook until browned on the bottom, 6 to 8 minutes, then flip. Carefully rewrap the skillet with a clean sheet of foil; top the chicken with the skillet. Cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 7 more minutes. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes, then slice.
• Meanwhile, pour the wine into the same nonstick skillet and simmer over medium heat until reduced by three-quarters, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and simmer until reduced to about 1/2 cup, about 3 more minutes.
• Bring 4 cups salted water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Whisk in the polenta. Cook, whisking, until tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the cheese and butter until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
• Toss the arugula with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Divide the polenta among plates. Top with the chicken, pan sauce and arugula.

Steps:

• Bring water and salt to a boil in a large saucepan; pour polenta slowly into boiling water, whisking constantly until all polenta is stirred in and there are no lumps.
• Reduce heat to low and simmer, whisking often, until polenta starts to thicken, about 5 minutes. Polenta mixture should still be slightly loose. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, whisking every 5 to 6 minutes. When polenta is too thick to whisk, stir with a wooden spoon. Polenta is done when texture is creamy and the individual grains are tender.
• Turn off heat and gently stir 2 tablespoons butter into polenta until butter partially melts; mix 1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese into polenta until cheese has melted. Cover and let stand 5 minutes to thicken; stir and taste for salt before transferring to a serving bowl. Top polenta with remaining 1 tablespoon butter and about 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for garnish.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cook onions in nonstick pan until they start to soften, then add shredded chicken, spices, and tomato sauce. Simmer about 10 minutes.
• Spread polenta in bottom of 13 x 9 pan.
• Spread refried beans over polenta.
• Spread meat mixture over beans.
• Top with shredded cheese.
• Bake for 30-45 minutes. (Until all hot and bubbly and cheese is melted to your liking).