Pulled chicken with charred-lime guac & crispy skin
Unashamedly, there is nothing refined about this pulled chicken with charred-lime guac & crispy skin recipe – it’s all about big flavours and getting your hands messy. For added crunch, and because I hate food waste, I’ve used the chicken skin to make some spiced chicken crackling to go on top. It makes an incredible snack in its own right.
Ingredients
8 skin-on and bone-in chicken thighs
120g tomato ketchup
90g American mustard
1 tbsp chopped coriander
1 tsp smoked paprika, plus 2 tsp for the chicken skin
1 tsp each cayenne pepper and garlic powder
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
For the guacamole
4 limes, halved
2 large, ripe avocados, stoned and peeled
pinch of dried chilli flakes
small pack coriander, chopped
For the salsa
½ cucumber, peeled, deseeded and diced
2 medium green chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp olive oil
2 limes, juiced
To serve
8 large corn tacos, warmed
soured cream
Method
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Remove the chicken skin from the thighs carefully, keeping them as intact as possible, and set aside. Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/ gas 2. Mix the ketchup, mustard, coriander, spices and vinegar with 100ml water in a casserole dish, then add the chicken and mix until well coated. Cook in the oven, uncovered, for 1 hr 20 mins.
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Meanwhile, spread the reserved skins out on a baking tray lined with parchment, then sprinkle with the paprika and a pinch of sea salt. Place another sheet of parchment on top, followed by another baking tray. Put in the oven on a shelf above the chicken and cook for 40 mins or until completely crisp.
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For the guacamole, heat a griddle or frying pan until extremely hot. Put the limes in the pan, cut-side down, to char, then set aside. Mash the avocado with the juice from half the charred limes, the chilli flakes and half the coriander. Season to taste. For the guacamole, heat a griddle or frying pan until extremely hot.
Put the limes in the pan, cut-side down, to char, then set aside. Mash the avocado with the juice from half the charred limes, the chilli flakes and half the coriander. Season to taste. -
For the salsa, mix all the ingredients with the remaining coriander and leave for 20 mins to infuse.
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Once the chicken is fall-apart tender, remove from the oven and leave until cool enough to handle. Using a fork, pull the meat away from the bone and shred through the sauce.
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To serve, pile a large spoonful of guacamole onto a taco, add some pulled chicken, then top with the salsa, some chicken crackling and soured cream. Serve the remaining charred limes on the side for squeezing over.
