Chicken Chile Verde
on Feb 14, 2022, Updated Jul 04, 2024
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Chicken Chile Verde is an easy Mexican stew that’s full of flavor! Diced chicken breasts are simmered in an easy tomatillo green chile sauce and served over rice or with warm tortillas.
When I’m craving comfort food, my go-to is either Mexican or Southwest cuisine. Likely it’s because I grew up in Arizona and now live in Colorado so I’ve been spoiled having easy access to it
This Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Skillet is always near the top of my list when I need a comfort food fix, but it may lose its top spot to this Chicken Chile Verde.
I’ve always known about chile verde, but what I didn’t realize is that there was a chicken version. Chile verde is generally made with pork shoulder. Since I tend to prefer chicken over pork I knew I had to try making this version.
What is Chile Verde
Chile verde translates to green chile. It’s a Mexican stew traditionally made chunks of pork shoulder that are simmered in roasted tomatillo and green chile sauce.
In that case of this chicken chile verde we’re replacing the pork with chicken breasts, although chicken thighs are alsoo a great option. Using chicken yields a lighter dish and also one that cooks faster.
Ingredients For Chicken Chile Verde
- Tomatillos
- Jalapeño
- Poblano chiles
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Cumin
- Oregano
- Smoked paprika
- Canned diced green chiles
- Cilantro
- Lime
- Low sodium chicken broth or water
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts
How To Make Chicken Chile Verde
Line a sheet pan with foil and place the halved poblanos, jalapeño, quartered onion, tomatillos, and cloves of garlic on it. Don’t peel the garlic, this will keep it from burning. Drizzle everything olive oil, salt and pepper.
Broil the vegetables for 6 minutes and then rotate the sheet pan and broil another 6 minutes or until the chile skins are blackened and the tomatillos have softened.
Peel the garlic and then transfer everything into a food processor or blender. Add in the cilantro, lime juice, dried spices, and chicken broth. Purée until you have a smooth sauce. Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.
Heat a large skillet with olive oil. Add the cubed chicken to the skillet and brown on one side for several minutes before moving the chicken. Cook the chicken for another minute and then pour in the chile verde sauce.
The chicken shouldn’t be cooked through at this point. It will finish cooking in the sauce.
Cover the chicken chile verde with a lid and lower the heat. Let it simmer for 15 minutes and then serve it over rice or with a side of warm tortillas.
How To Serve Chicken Chile Verde
- Over brown or white rice. If you want to give it even more flavor add a tablespoon or two of chopped cilantro and the juice of half of a lime to the rice.
- With warm flour or corn tortillas for scooping it up.
- As a filling for burritos. Make the burritos more hearty by adding black bean or rice.
- With tortilla chips. You could even turn this into chicken chile verde nachos. Top the tortilla chips with shredded Monterey Jack cheese and the chicken chile verde. Bake in the oven at 400° F. until the cheese is melted then remove them and top with chopped cilantro, crumbled queso fresco, and dollop of plain Greek yogurt or sour cream.
Storing, Freezing, And Reheating Instructions
Storing – You can store the chile verde in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
Freezing – If you plan to freeze the chicken chile verde, let it cool completely and then transfer it to a freezer safe container or freezer bag. It will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Reheating – Remove the chicken chile verde from the freezer and into the refrigerator. Let it defrost overnight. Once defrosted you can reheat it in the microwave or in a skillet on the stove.
More Mexican Inspired Recipes
- Baked Green Chile Chicken
- Slow Cooker Creamy Green Chile Chicken Enchilada Soup
- Chipotle Lime Grilled Chicken with Mango Salsa
- Mexican Meatball Soup
- Shrimp Tacos with Creamy Slaw
Did you make this Chicken Chile Verde? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.
Chicken Chile Verde
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 1/4 pounds tomatillos husks removed and washed to remove tacky film on skin
- 1 jalapeño halved, seeded and deveined
- 2 poblano chiles seeded and deveined
- 1/2 of a yellow onion quartered with the root intact
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
- 4 ounce can diced green chiles
- 1 cup cilantro
- 1 lime juiced
- 1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth or water
- 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
Instructions
- Preheat oven to broil and move one of the oven racks to the top portion of the oven. Line a sheet pan with foil and place the poblanos, jalapeño, onion, tomatillos, and garlic cloves on it. Drizzle with a tablespoon of olive oil and rub everything until it's coated. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- Broil for 6 minutes and then rotate the sheet pan and broil another 6 minutes or until the chile skins are blackened and the tomatillos have softened. Remove from the oven and roughly chop the poblanos, jalapeño, and onion.
- Add all of the vegetables along with any of the juices from the tomatillos to a food processor or blender. Add in the dried spices, can of diced green chiles, cilantro, lime juice, and chicken broth or water. Purée until smooth and taste for seasoning. Add additional salt, pepper, or lime juice as needed.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil to a large skillet. Heat over medium-high and swirl the oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add in the chicken and spread it into a single layer. Season with salt and pepper and let it cook undisturbed for about 3 minutes.
- Once browned stir it and cook for another minute. The chicken shouldn't be fully cooked at this point. Pour in the chile verde sauce and stir. Cover with a lid and simmer on low for 15 minutes.
- Serve the chicken chile verde over rice or with warm tortillas. Top with crumbled queso fresco and chopped cilantro if desired.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Absolutely delicious and so easy.
The sauce was great!!! Going to use in my eggs for breakfast tacos. Legit so tasty. Thanks!
love this dish, and yes a lot of flavor and a flavor profile that I’ve come to love having loved red sauces and red based chili for so long instead, so thank you