Smoky Chipotle Chicken with Chorizo

I’m a self-confessed chocoholic, so I was delighted to learn that Mexicans sometimes use chocolate in their savory dishes- how good is that? Chocolate was a sacred drink of the Mayan Indians in Mexico, who harvested it from the seeds of the cacao tree. It then made its way into dishes such as Mole Poblano, which blends chocolate with various chiles and spices and is served at special occasions.

Since I’m now based in San Diego, California, I’ve had to shift my cooking away from my familiar French techniques (think butter and cream), to more Mexican-influenced cooking, with its chiles and strong flavors.

So, my next offering is Smoky Chipotle Chicken with Chorizo – perfect to serve to your guests over to watch a week-end football game on TV or as an alternative to eating the hum-drum Big Mac. Chipotles are jalapeño peppers that have been smoked and they will add a nice smoky ‘punch’ to your dishes.

                                          Chipotle Chiles- they’re smokin’ hot

This dish also combines shredded chicken with chorizo sausage and fire-roasted red bell peppers to provide further depth to the flavors. But how to satisfy my chocoholic yearnings? Well, I decided to add a little unsweetened dark chocolate to the dish, providing a little chocolaty ‘undercurrent’ to the flavors, without being overbearing- NICE!

The Ingredients

• For the chipotle peppers, use canned Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce. Adobo sauce is a spicy, dark red Mexican sauce made from ground chiles, herbs, garlic, tomatoes and vinegar. You can find this product in many U.S. supermarkets or Mexican specialty stores in other countries. If not, you can substitute either chipotle chili powder or Mexican chili powder.

 Warning- do not use more than two chiles in your recipe or you may be reaching for the nearest fire extinguisher!

•  For the chorizo, use Mexican chorizo. This is ground pork or beef seasoned with chile and garlic and stuffed into casings. After removing the casings, the meat resembles soft, minced meat and must be cooked prior to eating. Spanish chorizo has milder flavorings and usually has a harder outer casing.

                              Mexican Beef Chorizo with casing

•  Fire Roasted Red Bell Peppers- these are bell peppers that have been roasted in the oven or on top of a gas burner. I used ready-roasted peppers purchased in a jar, but you could roast your own.