Chipotle Chicken Hot Dish

  • Yield:8 Servings
  • Time:
    ~2 hrs, 9 mins show details

Hot Dish: A Minnesota Tradition

For those uninitiated, a common item you'll find at virtually every gathering in the great state of MN is the "Hot Dish". It tends to be a mish-mash of food, cooked in the venerable 9"x13" baking dish, and fuses cuisine from all over into hearty, cold weather fare.

Based on either rice or pasta, with veggies, cheese, and meat throughout. A single scoop will warm you up after a day shoveling the drive for the 4th time because the plow guy thinks it's funny to leave a 2-foot tall mound in front of your driveway.

I'll be posting a couple of these as I make them. The first is a Tex-Mex inspired spicy offering guarnteed to wake up your taste buds, fill you up, and won't hurt the pocket book at all.

Tags: dinner, lunch, Tex-Mex, baked, main dish, Autumn, Winter

Ingredients

  • 1½ pounds
    Chicken Thighs, Boneless Skinless, 1/2" Dice, salt and pepper seasoning
  • 8 fluid ounces
    Tomato Sauce
  • 7 ounces
    Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce
  • 12 ounces
    Roasted Red Peppers, Drained if canned
  • 10 ounces
    Diced Tomatoes, with green chilis if canned
  • 15 ounces
    Black Beans, Canned, drained and rinsed
  • 10 ounces
    Queso Fresco, Crumbled fine
  • 1 pound
    White Rice, Dry weight
  • 15 ounces
    Water, Or low-sodium chicken stock
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Equipment

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Preparation

  1. 15 mins

    Preheat oven to 350°F.

  2. 5 mins

    Dice chicken, season with salt and pepper.

  3. 13 mins

    Cook chicken at medium-high heat on stove in sautee pan using a little vegetable oil, till starting to brown and almost fully cooked (Internal temperature of about 155°F or so). Set aside to cool to room temperature.

  4. 2 mins

    Using immersion blender, food processor, or blender, puree the chipotle peppers and adobo sauce and roasted red peppers to a fine sauce.

  5. 30 secs

    Add diced tomatoes - do not drain.

  6. 1 min

    Drain and rinse black beans, add to sauce.

  7. 30 secs

    Add tomato sauce and water.

  8. 45 secs

    Stir sauce well.

  9. 1 min

    Add sauce, chicken, and rice to 9"x13" baking dish. Stir to combine.

  10. 2 mins

    Wrap baking dish tightly with aluminum foil (double layer if not using heavy duty). You're cooking rice in the oven from cold.

  11. 1 hr

    Place baking dish in center oven rack, and bake for 1hr.

  12. 10 mins

    Lift corner of foil, and make sure your rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed. Check every 10 minutes till done.

  13. 5 mins

    Crumble 1/2 queso fresco, and stir gently into the bake with a fork or wooden spoon. This will fluff the rice and spread the cheese throughout.

  14. 1 min

    Crumble remaining 1/2 of queso fresco over top.

  15. 3 mins

    optional

    Using a torch or broiler, give the queso fresco some color (if desired).

  16. 10 mins

    Allow to cool some before service.

Notes

It's cooled off considerably here in MN, and stick-to-your-ribs food is very much on the menu. This will end up being part of a series of Hot Dish creations :)

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