Martha Stewart Chicken Chilaquiles Recipe

Nobody believes this takes 30 minutes until they make it. Martha Stewart’s Chicken Chilaquiles is a quick chicken chilaquiles recipe made with shredded rotisserie chicken simmered in a smoky chipotle tomato sauce, served over crispy tortilla chips in a bowl, and topped with sour cream, crumbled feta, and fresh cilantro.

This chicken chilaquiles recipe is one of Martha Stewart’s fastest chicken recipes and I make it on weeknights when I grab a rotisserie chicken on the way home and have no plan for dinner. The chipotle tomato sauce takes about 8 minutes and then you just stir in the chicken and pour it over chips. I make this year-round because it works in every season and nobody has ever said no to it.

Try More Chicken Recipes:

• Chicken Enchiladas
• Enchilada Casserole
• Chicken Taco Salad

Why You Will Love These Chicken Chilaquiles:

• 30 minutes with a rotisserie chicken: You do not cook the chicken. You buy it cooked, pull it apart, and stir it into a sauce. The only actual cooking is making the chipotle tomato sauce which takes about 8 minutes. I have made this at 8 pm on a Tuesday with nothing else planned and dinner was on the table before 8:30.
• The chipotle adobo is what makes it: Two canned chipotles plus a tablespoon of the adobo sauce from the can give the tomato sauce a smoky, slightly spicy flavor that tastes like it took hours to build. Without the chipotles this would just be chicken in tomato sauce. With them it is something you actually crave.
• Chips in the bowl, not baked: Martha puts the tortilla chips in the bowl raw and pours the hot chicken mixture over them. The chips soften a little on the bottom and stay crunchy on top. It is the texture contrast that makes this feel like a real meal and not just nachos.

Chicken Chilaquiles Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 can (28 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes, in puree
• 2 canned chipotle chilies in adobo, finely chopped (about 1 heaping tablespoon), plus 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
• Coarse salt
• 1 small cooked rotisserie chicken (about 1 3/4 pounds), skinned and shredded (about 4 cups)
• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, lightly packed
• 4 cups (about 3 ounces) tortilla chips
• 1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
• 1 3/4 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1/4 cup)
• 4 cilantro sprigs, for garnish

How To Make Martha Stewart Chicken Chilaquiles

1. Make the sauce: Put the oil and garlic in a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring now and then, until the garlic is fragrant and sizzling, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes with their puree and break them up in the pot. Add the chipotles, adobo sauce, and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil and season with salt.
2. Simmer until thick: Turn the heat down and simmer rapidly until the sauce is lightly thickened, 6 to 8 minutes.
3. Add the chicken: Stir in the shredded chicken and cook until hot, about 1 minute. Take the pot off the heat and stir in the chopped cilantro.
4. Assemble and serve: Divide the tortilla chips among 4 shallow bowls. Spoon the chicken mixture and sauce over the chips. Top with sour cream, crumbled feta, and cilantro sprigs.

Recipe Tips

• Use rotisserie chicken: Martha calls for a small rotisserie, about 1 3/4 pounds. Pull off the skin, take the meat off the bones, and shred it with your hands. You need about 4 cups. I buy one on the way home and it is still warm when I shred it.
• Start with fewer chipotles if you are careful about heat: Two chipotles plus adobo sauce make this medium-spicy. I started with 1 chipotle the first time and it was too mild. Two is the right amount for me but if you do not like any heat, start with 1 and taste the sauce before adding more.
• Break up the tomatoes in the pot: Martha says break them up and I use a wooden spoon to crush them against the side of the pan. You want some chunks left. If you blend them smooth you lose the texture that makes chilaquiles different from enchilada sauce.
• Do not cook the chips: The chips go in the bowl raw and the hot sauce softens them. If you add them to the pot they absorb all the liquid and turn to mush in about 2 minutes. I did this once and had to start over with fresh chips.

The 30-Minute Dinner I Come Back To

I have a short list of dinners I can make in 30 minutes that actually taste like I tried. This is at the top of that list. The rotisserie chicken does all the heavy lifting and the chipotle adobo is the ingredient that makes the sauce taste like it simmered for hours instead of 8 minutes.

• Martha suggests using queso fresco or queso anejo instead of feta for a more authentic flavor. I have tried queso fresco and it crumbles the same way but tastes creamier. Either works.
• I sometimes add a squeeze of lime over the top right before eating. Martha does not call for it but the acid brightens everything and cuts through the smoky chipotle.

My family asks for this more than the enchiladas and it takes a third of the time. That tells you everything.

What Goes Well With These Chilaquiles

I eat this by itself. It is already chips, chicken, sauce, cheese, and sour cream in a bowl. A scoop of guacamole on top is the only thing I ever add.

A cold cucumber salad or sliced avocado next to the bowl if someone asks. Anything heavier tips the whole meal over.

How To Store Leftovers

Keep the chicken mixture and chips separate. The chips dissolve into soggy cardboard if they sit in the sauce overnight. The sauce and chicken in a container last for 3 days and the chipotle flavor actually deepens the next day.

Reheat the chicken on the stove and pour it over fresh chips. It is somehow better the second time. I have eaten cold leftovers straight from the container over a handful of chips standing at the kitchen counter and I am not ashamed of it.

FAQs

• What are chilaquiles? A Mexican dish where fried tortilla pieces are simmered in salsa or sauce. Martha’s version is simpler. She puts chips in a bowl and pours the hot chicken and sauce over them so the chips soften on the bottom but stay crunchy on top. It is the same idea but easier.
• Can I use queso fresco instead of feta? Yes. Martha suggests it in her notes. Queso fresco is creamier and milder than feta and more traditional for chilaquiles. I have used both and both work. Use whatever you can find at your store.
• How spicy is this? Medium. Two chipotles in adobo give it a smoky warmth that builds but it is not going to burn you. If you want it mild, use 1 chipotle. If you want it hot, add a third or drizzle more adobo sauce on top.
• Can I cook the chicken from scratch instead of using rotisserie? You can but then it is not a 30-minute recipe anymore. The whole point is that the chicken is already cooked. If you want to cook your own, poach or bake chicken breasts ahead of time and shred them.

More Chicken Recipes:

• Chicken Chili Hominy
• Chicken Chile Stew
• Chicken Stir Fry

Nutrition Facts

(1 serving, serves 4)

• Calories: 525
• Total Fat: 22g
• Saturated Fat: 6g
• Cholesterol: 90mg
• Sodium: 750mg
• Total Carbohydrates: 30g
• Protein: 40g