Delicious BBQ Tostadas

I have an addiction. It’s called barbecue sauce. I love it and look for opportunities to put it on anything and everything. I also love Mexican food, so marrying the two seemed a perfect match (even if it isn’t strictly authentic).

These barbecue tostadas are light, fresh and satisfying, sure to win over even picky kids.

INGREDIENTS
Barbecue chicken
2-3 chicken breasts (tenderloins grill faster for those afraid of grilling chicken)
1/2 C. Italian dressing
Brown sugar barbecue sauce

Tostada Shells
6-12 corn tortillas
Olive oil
Salt

Pico de Gallo
2-3 Roma tomatoes
1/4 onion
1/2 jalapeño
small handful cilantro

Toppings
Black beans
Shredded cheese
Shredded lettuce
Sour cream

The success of this dish is in the chicken. Start by marinating the chicken in Italian dressing in a Ziplock bag for at least an hour. Next, grill the chicken. The George Foreman isn’t going to cut it here, you need the real deal. Coat the chicken with barbecue sauce as it grills. I think the brown sugar varieties work particularly well. You may need to reapply the barbecue sauce a few times and once more just before the chicken is finished.

Remove the chicken from the grill and cut up the chicken into little pieces. Set aside.

While the chicken is grilling, you need to prepare the shells. This is done by warming up corn tortillas and lightly brushing them with olive oil and topping with salt. Bend the tortillas into the empty spaces in an upside-down muffin tin. Make sure the tortillas are warm when you do this or they will crack. Cook in a 375-degree oven for about 10 minutes or until crisp. Remove the shells from the tin immediately after removing from the oven or they will stick to the tin.

The other essential ingredient to this dish is pico de gallo. It may seem a pain to make, but it’s so fresh and light. To recap, you make pico de gallo by finely dicing 2-3 Roma tomatoes, 1/4 onion, 1/2 jalapeño and a small handful of cilantro. Stir together in a bowl.

Assemble the tostadas by placing black beans in the bottom of the shell. Top with the barbecue chicken and add a bit of extra barbecue sauce. Add cheese, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo and a hit of sour cream. Devour.

The tostada shells are kind of small, so you will probably want to plan for two for each adult. The black beans complement the barbecue chicken well and add a nice texture to the dish.