Mostly Authentic Taquitos

Living in South Texas exposes me to a lot of incredible Mexican food, which is great for me since it’s my favorite type of food. Every now and then I find myself craving something more authentic than homemade tacos or fajitas and my husband came up with the perfect solution: taquitos.

A couple weeks back I posted about the BBQ taquitos he came up with, which are delicious if you haven’t tried them yet. While he was coming up with that recipe, he also tried his hand at more authentic taquitos and this is what he came up with. Now, I don’t know if these really are authentic or not, but they sure taste it.

INGREDIENTS
6-10 corn tortillas
6-10 fajita-size flour tortillas
3-4 chicken breasts

2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. paprika
½ tsp. garlic salt
½ tsp. onion powder
½ tsp. black pepper

Pico de gallo
3 roma tomatoes, diced
1/4 onion, diced
cilantro, chopped
1/2 jalapeno, diced

Toppings
Sour cream
Shredded cheese
Shredded lettuce

DIRECTIONS
1. Boil chicken breasts (best to split them into tender-sized pieces first for faster boiling).
2. Drain water and place warm chicken breasts in mixer. Mix until chicken is shredded.
3. Meanwhile, combine the chili powder, paprika, garlic salt, onion powder, black pepper and cayenne pepper in a bowl. Mix well. I don’t exactly measure when I combine these, but you definitely want chili powder to be the core of the mix.
4. Place shredded chicken in a pan on medium to medium-high heat. Pour the spice mixture on top and add about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of water and stir until the mix evenly coats the chicken.
5. Heat, stirring occasionally, until most of the water burns off. You don’t want to do it too long or your chicken will become incredibly dry.
6. Warm the tortilla shells in the microwave.
7. Place a strip of chicken down the edge of the tortilla. You don’t want to do it in the middle or too close to the edge. About 1/4 of the way away from the edge of the tortilla is a good place to put the chicken.
8. Wrap the tortilla into a tight taquito, with the open end down against the plate to hold it closed.
9. Fry the taquito in vegetable oil in either a fryer or in a pan on the stove. Be sure to turn halfway through so each side gets a nice light, golden crisp.