COOKING WITH KAYLA ~ CRISPY DOS TOPAS CHICKEN TACOS

March 30, 2023By Whitney Riles

CRISPY DOS TOPAS CHICKEN TACOS

WITH CREAMY BLACK BEANS AND CRUNCHY RED CABBAGE

Makes 10 tacos

Recipe by: Kayla Roche, Local Ventura chef and friend of Findings Market

Dos Topas beer is a clean, crisp lager with a hint of maize and cracker, making it an interesting beer to both drink and cook with. Our friends at Char Man hot sauce have partnered up with Topa Topa Brewery to create their very special Dos Locals hot sauce. It’s creamy, complex and nicely spiced, using a blend of jalapenos and toasted Guajillo and Morita chiles.

We could tell that these two great brands needed a killer taco recipe and so we got to work. The chicken in these tacos is spice rubbed and then slow-simmered in Dos Topas beer, citrus and green chiles. The meat comes out of the oven, tender, flavorful and falling off the bone. We shred it up, along with the flavorful skin, and crisp it all under the broiler. The tacos get filled with this amazing chicken and creamy black beans before getting shallow fried and stuffed with a crunchy red cabbage slaw. We like to serve the beer braising liquid on the side so you can dunk your tacos… and don’t forget a drizzle of the Dos Locals hot sauce!

Ingredients

Meat

1 1/2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 3 to 4 thighs)

Produce

1 ½ medium yellow onions

½ a small orange

1 medium jalapeno

¼ head red cabbage

¼ bunch cilantro

2 green onions

1 medium lime

Pantry

3 teaspoons fine sea salt, plus more to taste

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon chili powder

3 tablespoons unrefined avocado oil, plus more for frying

2 bay leaves

2 (4 ounce) cans mild diced green chilies

1 (12 ounce) can Dos Topas beer or other Lager style beer

1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock

1 (15 ounce) can black beans

10 corn tortillas

1. Start prepping the chicken

-Preheat the oven to 300°F and remove the upper rack.

-Lay the chicken out on a baking tray. In a small bowl, combine 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon cumin, 1 teaspoon oregano and 1 teaspoon chili powder. Mix to incorporate. Sprinkle the seasoning mix over the chicken thighs, coating both sides liberally.

-Peel one onion and cut into 8 large wedges. Cut the orange in half. Wrap one half and reserve it for another use. Cut the remaining half into 4 pieces.

-In a medium Dutch oven, heat 2 tablespoons of avocado oil over a medium-high heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the chicken, skin side down, to the pan. Lower the heat to medium and cook until the skin begins to turn brown and crispy, about 4 to 5 minutes. Using tongs, flip the chicken over and cook for an additional 4 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a clean plate and set aside.

-In the same pan, add the onion, oranges and bay leaves. Saute until the onions begin to soften, about 2 to 3 minutes. Turn off the heat.

-Nestle the chicken back in the pan, skin side up. Add one can of green chilies, one can of beer and a 1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock. Put the lid on the pan and transfer it to the oven. Bake the chicken until it is tender and falling off the bone, about 1 hour and 10 minutes.

-When the chicken is done cooking, remove the pot from the oven and allow it to cool for 15 to 20 minutes. Line a baking tray with foil

-Using tongs, remove the chicken from the pot and transfer to a clean plate. Once cool enough to handle, shred the chicken and transfer it to the foil lined tray. The bones can be discarded and the skin can be chopped and added to the tray with the chicken. Taste the chicken and season with additional salt, if desired.

-Place a fine mesh strainer over a small sauce pot and pour the liquid from the Dutch oven into the pot. Some of the onion that gets caught in the strainer can be finely chopped and added to the tray with the chicken. The remaining contents of the strainer can be discarded.

2. While the chicken is cooking, prepare the beans.

-Peel and finely mince the remaining half an onion. De-seed and finely mince the jalapeño.

-Heat 1 tablespoon of avocado oil in a small saute pan, over medium-high heat. Add the onion, jalapeno and the remaining can of diced green chilies. Sauté, stirring frequently, until the onion turns translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes.

-Drain the beans and add them to the pan, along with ¼ cup of the broth (reserved from cooking the chicken) and ½ a teaspoon of salt. Simmer the beans, mashing frequently with the back of a fork, until the liquid begins to evaporate and the beans thicken into a paste, about 10 to 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside.

3. While the beans are cooking, prepare the cabbage.

-Remove the core from the ¼ wedge of red cabbage. Using a sharp knife or mandolin, shred the cabbage very thinly and place in a medium mixing bowl.

-Thinly slice the white and green parts of the green onion and add them to the cabbage. Remove the lower stems from the cilantro and finely chop the leaves. Add the cilantro, the juice of 1 lime and ½ a teaspoon of salt to the cabbage. Toss to evenly coat the mixture and set aside.

4. Assemble and Cook the Tacos

-Turn the broiler on high and position a rack about 12-inches from the heating element. Broil the chicken until golden and crispy, stopping to check and stir it frequently, about 10 to 12 minutes total. Remove the chicken from the oven. Turn off the broiler and set the oven to 200°F.

-Warm the braising broth over a low heat.

-Begin heating ¼ cup of avocado oil in an 10-inch sauté pan or cast iron skillet.

-While the oil is heating, lay the tortillas out on a clean work surface. Smear half of each tortilla with the black beans and top with a scoop of chicken. Fold the tortillas in half, covering the filling.

-When the oil is shimmering, add the tacos, cooking 2 to 3 at a time. Fry each side until golden brown and slightly crispy, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. When the tacos are finished, transfer them to a baking tray and keep them in the warm oven while you continue to cook the remaining batches. Replenish the oil in the pan as needed and be sure to keep an even heat so that the tacos do not burn.

-Once all the tacos are cooked. Remove the tray from the oven. Stuff each taco with some of the red cabbage and serve immediately with warm broth on the side for dipping and a drizzle of Dos Topas hot sauce, as desired.