Bart's "World Famous" BBQ Chicken Thigh Soft Tacos (or Soft-Tacos)
WITH SAUTÉED BELL PEPPERS, BLACK BEANS, MEXICAN RICE & BBQ SAUCE
A Recipe From Bart's Cookbook 🕮 Who's Hungry? © 2024 by Bart Smith
RECIPE INTRODUCTION
I ’m not kidding when I say this has got to be one of the MOST LOVED MEALS inside WHO’S HUNGRY?
Yes, I know, my pizza and other meals rock, but you haven’t had anything until you’ve had my BBQ CHICKEN THIGH SOFT TACOS!!!
I had the idea to make my mini-burritos with BBQ sauce because I’ve made BBQ chicken pizza before and was curious how this idea would turn out. Well, to my total surprise, they surpassed all my expectations.
YES, O.M.G., THIS BBQ CHICKEN THIGH BURRITOS are absolutely ORGASMICALLY DELISH!!!
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
❑ FOREMAN GRILL — This is how I grill my chicken thighs. If you don't have a Foreman grill, why not! ;-) If you don't have one, you can cook them in a second frying pan on medium heat for 10-15 minutes. Just add a little grapeseed oil and my favorite Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning Blend, turn often, and you'll be fine.
❑ LARGE FRYING PAN — I'll heat up my Mexican rice, black beans and sauté my bell peppers in one pan.
❑ COOKIE SHEET — I'll use this to place 2-4 tortillas with cheese on them into the oven to warm up and melt the cheese.
❑ CUTTING BOARD — You'll need something to slice your bell peppers on. Could also just be a plate if you don't have a cutting board.
❑ PLATE — I like using a separate plate to slice my chicken thighs up half-way through grilling them.
INGREDIENTS
❑ FLOUR TORTILLAS — Use what type you like, but flour tortillas are my go-to favorite. I've made these with spinach tortillas, tomato tortillas, whole wheat tortillas, gluten-free tortillas and corn tortillas. So, whatever you have on hand or prefer for dietary reasons, hey, go for it.
❑ MEXICAN CHEESE — Gotta have some Mexican cheese on our burrito absolutely.
❑ BELL PEPPERS — As many colors as you want: red, green, yellow, orange. I use them all. Specifically, I only slice about 4-5 slices per colored pepper. I don't use the WHOLE pepper, no.
❑ SPANISH/MEXICAN RICE — While optional, it is a favorite ingredient in my burritos. See if your grocery store deli has some fresh Mexican rice for sale. I live near Cardenas, a Mexican-themed grocery store and they sell it fresh near where they sell the tortillas. If you can't find fresh Mexican rice in your deli, there's always Spanish rice in a box.
❑ BLACK BEANS — Love me some black beans in my BBQ chicken thigh burritos.
❑ GRAPESEED OIL — I'll use just a few tablespoons to sauté my bell peppers in the large frying pan.
❑ DASH SOUTHWEST CHIPOTLE SEASONING — Love this stuff! I'll use it on the tortillas, on the rice as it's heating up and on the chicken thighs in the Foreman grill.
❑ BBQ SAUCE — For me, I discovered KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce is the best flavored BBQ sauce I've ever had. Others will work if you have them on hand too.
❑ CHICKEN THIGHS — This recipe goes best with chicken thighs, but if all you have are chicken breasts on hand, they'll work too.
DIRECTIONS
Here's exactly how I make my "world famous" BBQ chicken thigh soft tacos / mini-burritos! Wait 'til you taste these! Guaranteed, you're about to go to another world via your taste buds.
STEP #1
GRILL CHICKEN THIGHS
★ 1.1 → Get out your Foreman grill if you have one and get ready to grill your chicken thighs. If you plan to sauté your chicken thighs, get a separate frying pan, add some grapeseed oil and Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning and sauté away!
★ 1.2 → Place chicken thighs on Foreman grill to grill nicely.
★ 1.3 → Sprinkle some Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning on both sides of your chicken thighs.
★ 1.4 → Keep an eye on them. HALF WAY THROUGH cooking, remove them from the grill and slice them up in bite size strips/pieces. It's easier to cut them AFTER they've been cooked for 5-8 minutes vs. when they're in their raw meat stage.
★ 1.5 → After you've sliced them, place them back on the grill to cook for another 5-8 minutes or so. Don't let them burn. Pull the plug when you think they're done and keep them in the grill to stay warm.
STEP #2
SLICE & SAUTÉ
BELL PEPPERS
★ 2.1 → Slice your bell peppers. All you need is about 5 slices per color. So, 4 colors x 5 slices = 20 total slices of bell peppers. IF you only have 1, 2 or 3 colors, do the math. You need about 5 slices of peppers per taco/burrito.
★ 2.2 → Once sliced, place on the large frying pan to one side with 3-4 tablespoons of grapeseed oil to sauté your peppers on medium heat for 5-8 minutes.
★ 2.3 → Stir peppers often so they don't burn.
Slice Your Peppers Into
4-5 Thin Slices Each Color
Place Pepper Slices On
1/3 Side In Frying Pan & Add
3-4 Tablespoons Of Oil
STEP #3
WARM UP SPANISH RICE
★ 3.1 → If you have to prepare your rice before everything else, do so so you can warm it up alongside everything you're doing in the large frying pan.
★ 3.2 → If your rice is ready, place 2 cups or so in the frying pan on the other side to warm up while your peppers sauté.
★ 3.3 → Add 3-5 tablespoons of water to the rice so it steams in the frying pan to get warm nicely.
★ 3.4 → This is on medium heat for 5-8 minutes alongside your peppers. Stir rice often so one side doesn't get burned.
The Spanish Rice I Use
(From Cardenas)
Pour 2 Cups Into 1/3
Side Of Your Frying Pan
Place Remaining Rice In
Zip-Lock Bag For Later Use
STEP #4
PREPARE YOUR TORTILLAS
★ 4.1 → Place as many tortillas (up to 4) on a cookie sheet that you (and your dinner guests) plan to eat. Typically, women eat 1-2 and men might have 2-5. Experiment with this to see how many you can/want to eat.
★ 4.2 → Sprinkle Mexican cheese on top of each tortilla.
★ 4.3 → Sprinkle Dash Southwest Chipotle Seasoning on top of each tortilla.
Place 1-4 Tortillas On A
Cookie Sheet & Add Cheese
Sprinkle Some Dash
Seasonings On Each
Keep The Mexican Cheese &
Tortillas Handy For Seconds
STEP #5
WARM UP BLACK BEANS
★ 5.1 → Open up a can of black beans, and (#1) place 1/2 in a Tupperware container for later use and (#2) the other 1/2 rinse and toss into the frying pan in the center to warm up alongside your rice and peppers.
★ 5.2 → Beans don't take long to warm up so they go in last compared to your peppers and rice that do need time to cook/warm up.
★ 5.3 → After about 5 minutes in the frying pan, mix your peppers/rice/beans and prepare to serve.
Open Can & Pour Half Into Tupperware Container
Drain The Bean Juice By
Washing Them In A Colander
Place Beans In The Middle
Of Your Frying Pan
STEP #6
SLICE CHICKEN IN STRIPS
★ 6.1 → Remove your chicken from the Foreman grill and slice it up in bite-sized little strips on a clean plate. Do this quickly. Then, ...
★ 6.2 → Place your bite-sized strips back onto the Foreman grill so they can cook evenly for 3-5 more minutes.
★ 6.3 → Sprinkle a little more Dash seasonings on the newly cut chicken if you desire. I know I do! ;-)
In-Tact Chicken Thighs
Cooking On The Grill
Remove Chicken &
Cut In Bite-Size Strips
Place Chicken Back On
The Grill To Cook Evenly
STEP #7
WARM UP TORTILLAS
★ 7.1 → Place the cookie sheet in the oven and turn on the oven to 350°. Warmup time is approximately 5-7 minutes.
★ 7.2 → Typically, in the time it takes to warm up the oven to 350°, your tortillas will warm up nicely and your cheese will melt some.
★ 7.3 → KEEP AN EYE ON THEM THOUGH! Check on them around 280° and 300°. Too long in the oven (over 350°) and your tortillas will crisp up some making them hard to fold.
★ 7.4 → While your tortillas warm up, your chicken should be done cooking. Proceed to STEP #9 and mix your chicken and BBQ sauce in a medium size pot.
★ 7.5 → When the oven hits 350°, your tortillas can be removed from the oven and placed on a surface where you can add the other ingredients. If your countertop cannot withstand hot pans/pots/cookie sheets, you could place a towel (or other hot pad) under your cookie sheet.
★ 7.6 → HOT!!!!! DO NOTE: Your tortillas will be HOT (temperature wise) when they come out of the oven. Handle with care.
STEP #8
STIR CHICKEN THIGHS
& BBQ SAUCE IN A POT
★ 8.1 → When your chicken is done cooking on the Foreman grill, remove it all and place in a pot with BBQ sauce and stir it up. Takes 1-2 minutes to do this.
★ 8.2 → No need to preheat the BBQ sauce. The chicken will be hot enough to warm up the BBQ sauce in no time! Granted, if you take your BBQ sauce out of the fridge, you might either set it out for an hour to warm up (room temperature) or sure, heat up your BBQ sauce in the same pot that you'll mix your chicken in. All up to you.
★ 8.3 → When done, set aside where you can access it to make your tacos / burritos.
Remove Cooked Chicken
From The Foreman Grill
Dump Cooked Chicken
Into A Pot Of BBQ Sauce
Stir Chicken In With BBQ
Sauce Until Drenched
SERVING
Here's how to SERVE my world famous BBQ chicken thigh soft tacos / mini-burritos like I do!
STEP #1
Mix Rice, Peppers & Beans Mix
& Add To Your Taco / Burrito
STEP #2
Add Rice, Peppers & Beans Mix
To 1/2 Side Of Each Tortilla
STEP #3
Add A Few Pieces Of BBQ
Chicken & Extra BBQ Sauce
STEP #4
Fold Into A Soft Taco
If You Want Like This
STEP #5
Fold Into A Mini-Burrito
If You Want Like This
STEP #6
Place On Plates &
Prepare To Serve
SERVING TIP
★ I like to leave the tortillas and Mexican cheese out just in case I want to make another taco/burrito after I serve 4 off the cookie sheet. When I make a 5th one, I'll top the tortilla with cheese and Dash like I did the others.
★ Then, I'll place the cookie sheet in the oven with the OVEN TURNED OFF. The oven is still warm enough to warm up the tortilla without turning it on and having to monitor it.
★ When you're ready for another taco/burrito, the tortilla is ready to top with ingredients again.
MARGARITAS ANYONE?
This dish goes so well with some very ice cold margaritas on ice. Here's what I use and how I serve 'em up!
STEP #2
Get Yourself Some
Margarita Salt & A Lime
STEP #3
Grab Some Ice-Cold Mugs
From Your Freezer Like I Have
STEP #4
Slice 1/4 Lime & Wet
The Rim With Its Juice
STEP #6
Add Lots Of Ice & Pour
Yourself A Margarita!
BART SMITH'S
BBQ CHICKEN THIGH
SOFT TACOS
-OR-
MINI-BURRITOS
So, are you ready to dine on these most amazing, otherworldly, most decadent, take-you-to-another-world BBQ chicken thigh soft tacos / mini-burritos? By all means, let's eat!
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