Crispy Chicken Tacos with Spicy Taco Sauce and Pico de Gallo

Ingredients

• 2 lb boneless chicken thighs (Cut into small pieces)
• salt (To taste, for chicken)
• 1 tsp smoked paprika (For chicken)
• 1 tsp chili powder (For chicken)
• 1 tbsp garlic powder (For chicken)
• 1 tsp black pepper (For chicken)
• 2 tbsp fresh garlic (Minced)
• 3 tbsp oil (Plus more for cooking the chicken)
• 1 onion (Finely chopped and washed, for pico de gallo)
• 1 tomato (Finely diced, for pico de gallo)
• 2 tbsp cilantro (Chopped, for pico de gallo)
• 1 tbsp lemon or lime juice (For pico de gallo)
• salt (To taste, for pico de gallo)
• 0.5 tsp black pepper (For pico de gallo)
• 0.5 cup mayonnaise (For spicy taco sauce)
• 0.5 cup sour cream (For spicy taco sauce)
• 2 tbsp hot sauce (Adjust to taste)
• 1 tsp smoked paprika (For spicy taco sauce)
• salt (To taste, for spicy taco sauce)
• 1 tsp black pepper (For spicy taco sauce)
• 1 tbsp garlic powder (For spicy taco sauce)
• 1 tbsp lemon juice (For spicy taco sauce)
• 2 tbsp water (To thin the sauce)
• 1 tsp cilantro (Freshly chopped, for spicy taco sauce)
• 18 mini tortacles (The source appears to mean mini tortillas)
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese (For assembling the tacos)
• oil (For frying)

Steps

1. 1

   Place the small pieces of chicken thighs in a bowl. Add salt to taste, smoked paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, and black pepper, then mix until the chicken is evenly seasoned.

2. 2

   Heat the 3 tablespoons of oil, with additional cooking oil as needed, in a pan over medium-high heat.

3. 3

   Add the minced garlic to the hot oil and sauté for 1 minute, until fragrant.

4. 4

   Add the seasoned chicken to the pan. Cook until the chicken is cooked through and crispy, then set it aside.

5. 5

   Make the pico de gallo by combining the finely chopped washed onion, diced tomato, chopped cilantro, lemon or lime juice, salt, and black pepper in a bowl. Mix well.

6. 6

   Refrigerate the pico de gallo until it is ready to use.

7. 7

   Prepare the spicy taco sauce by mixing the mayonnaise, sour cream, hot sauce, smoked paprika, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and lemon juice in a bowl.

8. 8

   Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of water to the sauce to reach the desired consistency, then stir in the freshly chopped cilantro.

9. 9

   Heat oil for frying in a pan over medium heat.

10. 10

    Add mozzarella cheese on top of the tortillas in the pan.

11. 11

    Place the cooked chicken on the fried tortillas. Close the tortillas and cook them until crispy and golden brown on both sides.

12. 12

    Serve the crispy chicken tacos with the refrigerated pico de gallo and spicy taco sauce.

Notes

The source says “mini tortacles,” which appears to be a typo for mini tortillas. The frying instructions do not specify the amount of frying oil, tortilla folding technique, or exact cooking time and temperature; cook until visibly crispy and golden brown on both sides as stated.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• tacos
• Mexican
• chicken
• fried
• crispy
• spicy
• fresh salsa