Chicken and Chard Burritos

Sometimes on Sundays I peruse cookbooks and I start getting excited. I start making up grocery lists and weekly menu plans, and I have it all figured out. I know that Thursday, I’m going to make Chicken Escabeche with Carrots and Jalapenos, and wild rice. Then things happen. The market doesn’t have any acceptable carrots, though the shelves are overflowing with beautiful leafy greens. Thursday, which seemed like a perfectly lovely day earlier in the week, turns out to be kind of exhausting, and when work is over and I’m standing in the kitchen, I know I don’t have the patience for wild rice. I have to re-think my plans, so that I can get back on the couch for a little restorative bad television. Sometimes when this happens, I turn to pizza, or bread and cheese. But sometimes when this happens, I get lucky, and something wonderful manages to happen in my own kitchen anyway. This was one of those times.

I bought Rick Bayless’s Mexican Everyday (Recipes Featured on Season 4 of the PBS-TV series “Mexico One Plate at a Time”) cookbook awhile ago, and I’m sad to say I haven’t cooked from it nearly as often as I thought I would. The end of 2011 was the Time of the Cookbooks for me: I check out so many from the library, and bought so many new books, that those who were early to the party got overshadowed. Sorry, Rick Bayless. I vowed last weekend to drag out some of my old friends and get re-acquainted and I settled on this great sounding recipe for Chicken Escabeche. It sounded lovely and simple, and just right for a weeknight dinner.

Due to the aforementioned lack of carrots, abundance of chard, and complete lack of desire for rice, this ended up being a different kind of meal. I decided on burritos. I changed the cooking technique a bit. And I ended up with something surprisingly delicious, and even a little familiar and comforting. Flour tortillas will do that to a Southern California girl like me.

Yes, this is another post in which I encourage you to experiment! So what if you don’t have all the ingredients the recipe calls for? Learning to cook means you learn how to take control. You understand how to tweak a recipe to turn out something new and great. Sometimes, it’s the greatest feeling in the world.

Of course, if you want a recipe, I’ve got one for you right here.

Chicken and Chard Burritos

Adapted from Rick Bayless’s Mexican Everyday

• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano (you can use regular oregano if you want)
• 1 big pinch of salt
• 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts
• 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 a small onion, sliced
• 1 big bunch of swiss chard, chopped and rinsed
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• 1 small can pickled jalapenos
• 1 cup water or chicken broth
• about 2 tablespoons salsa (I used what was leftover in our refrigerator; you can omit this if you want)
• 2 large flour tortillas
• sour cream or yogurt or cheese or avocado or whatever you have on hand for serving

Mix together the allspice, pepper, oregano, and salt. If you have a mortar and pestle, you can grind it up a bit to make it powdery. If you don’t, no worries. It’ll be fine. Sprinkle about half of the mixture on the skin side of two chicken breasts.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the chicken, skin side down. Spluttering will happen. Cover the pan and cook the chicken for about 4 minutes, then flip it over with some tongs, cover the pan again, and cook for another 4 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.

Adjust the heat if it’s too hot, and add a smidge more olive oil if it’s too try. Add the onions, and saute them for a few minutes, until they begin to turn golden brown and soften up. Stir in the chard. Cook and stir until the chard starts to wilt a little, then stir in the garlic and the jalapenos. Then add the liquid and the salsa, if you’re using. Add the chicken breasts back to the pan.

Cover the pan and let the mixture simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan and cut the chicken from the bone into bite-sized pieces. Warm your tortillas and spoon a bit of the chard mixture and the chicken into each. Roll up into a happy burrito with any and all of your desired toppings, and enjoy!