Jorge’s Chicken Tinga Tostada, the Winner of Our Family Cookoff

This chicken tinga tostada with toasted poblano chiles, diced tomatoes and a touch of crema emerged as the clear winner at Arianna Hermosilo’s family tostada cook-off. ”It was Christmas 2017,” says the Chicago native. ”I don’t remember who came up with the idea, but it spread through my dad’s side of the family. We were going to have a cooking competition for the best Mexican tostada topping.”

“For most families, the holidays are a time to reminisce over the past, fawn over grandkids, and enjoy food. Lots and lots of food,” Arianna explains. ”And while my family has often feasted on Mexican and American dishes — no one bats an eye at seeing tamales, arroz, and frijoles next to a pot roast, mashed potatoes, and biscuits — a few years back we decided to go all in on our Mexican traditions. Exhibit A: Our tostada family cooking competition.”

Arianna says she hung back and didn’t submit a tostada entry. ”I didn’t recognize the joys of cooking then, so I was not among the competitors. I did contribute tostadas though, and thankfully, we had several great cocineros in the family who rose to the challenge. At my aunt Blanca’s house that day, we were greeted by a spread of delicious dishes for our tostadas. She made lomo or pork tenderloin; her sister, my aunt Marisela, prepared nopalitos; and my mom, Lula, set out a family favorite: her traditional chicken tinga. The table was also set with non-competition sides we all loved, like frijoles and guacamole, to round out the meal.”

The competing tostada toppings were each labeled with a number, and her family lined up to sample each one. “Diligently, we all helped ourselves to as many tostadas as could fit onto our plates so we could taste — and vote!”

The History of the Mexican Tostada

“Our indigenous ancestors created tostadas long before the conquest. Tostadas along with their other corn-based cousins survived the conquistadores and became part of everyday Mexican eating. They are also a staple across the Mexican diaspora,” says Arianna.

”Not sure about the difference between a tostada and a taco? Tostadas are fried or toasted and therefore crunchy. They are flat and always corn. Tacos, on the other had, are usually soft, tend to be folded around their filling, and can be either corn or flour. They’re often smaller, too.”

“In my family, tostadas are the go-to crunchy vessel for a simple bite like picadillo, ceviche or cueritos, or used the way a dinner roll is to accompany a main dish like mole or pozole,” explains Arianna. “My mom often makes ours the old-school way, letting tortillas sit on the comal to toast. And sometimes we simply forget that there’s one more tortilla sitting on the comal and it hardens accidentally. No harm, no foul because what was once a tortilla is now a tostada and is just as useful and enjoyable.”

Time to Vote for the Best Tostada

Once all the votes were counted, one tostada topping by a newer member of the family, Arianna’s brother in law Jorge was the clear winner. Followed closely behind by her mother’s recipe, which came in as a top contender.

Jorge’s winning approach? Abuela cooking, reports Arianna. Jorge made his creamy chicken tinga with poblano chiles with a recipe his mother, Francisca, concocted in her kitchen back in Mexico. ”He told us he brought her homemade sazón to the States and that when he cooks her recipes, it’s almost like having her here with him. That’s significant because Jorge had only been in the U.S. three years or so. My sister met him in Mexico and they married and he immigrated once he received a visa.”

Like so many Mexican families, “my family represents multiple stages of immigration,” says Arianna. ”My paternal grandfather arrived in the U.S. in the ’40s. He later brought my grandmother and they had four children in the U.S., one of them being my father. My dad met my mom in the same town my grandmother came from in Mexico: San Miguel el Alto in Jalisco, and my mother immigrated to the U.S. after they married in 1979. And now we have welcomed Jorge, who’s also from San Miguel el Alto, to our family and this country. He follows in the footsteps of so many immigrants who continue to make favorite traditional dishes to stay connected to their homeland and family.

This Tostada “Fills Me with Gratitude”

What does Jorge think about his winning tinga tostata? “To share this with my kids, with you and the people around me fills me with gratitude,” Jorge told Arianna. ”Es algo de México que no se me va olvidar nunca estando acá.”

That’s what abuela cooking is all about: Cooking your way home, together. Arianna looks forward to the next time her family gets together. We will ”enjoy our favorite dishes, swap stories, and maybe even challenge each other to a traditional comida competition again.”

Ready to Try the Chicken Tinga Tostada That Won the Cook-off?

Jorge’s Chicken Tinga Tostada: The Cookoff Winner

Recipe by Arianna Hermosillo

5.0 from 2 votes

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

45

minutes

Ingredients

• 6 poblano chiles

• 2 to 3 chicken breasts, boneless

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil

• 1 Tbsp butter

• 1 large onion, chopped

• 1 chicken bouillon cube, powdered

• 1 1/2 tsp sazon

• 6 small tomatoes, diced

• 1/4 cup chicken stock

• 1/4 cup crema Mexicana

• 1/2 tsp salt (to taste, if needed once it’s done)

• Garnish Options for This Tostada

• avocado, sliced or chopped

• radishes, thinly sliced

• onion, minced

• queso fresco, crumbled

• fresh cilantro, chopped

• crema Mexicana, for drizzling

Directions

• Toast the poblanos on a heated comal.
• Remove the poblanos’ charred skins. (See note below for Jorge’s suggestion for easy chile skin removal.) Slice into thin strips and set aside.
• Boil the chicken with a little salt. Once cooked (about 15 minutes), pull the cooked chicken apart with two forks or your fingers, if cool.
• Heat the oil in a pan and add the pulled chicken meat to brown and fry it slightly. Set aside.
• Heat butter in a pan and add the chicken, onions, toasted poblano chiles, sazon, and powdered chicken bouillon. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes and chicken stock. Let the mixture simmer for about 5 minutes. Start adding the crema Mexicana a little bit a time, until you get the creamy consistency you want. Taste for salt, and add a little, if necessary.
• It’s ready! Serve with tostadas and garnish to your taste. Popular options include: sliced or chopped avocado, thinly sliced radishes, minced white onion, a sprinkling of queso fresco, fresh cilantro, and/or a drizzle of Mexican crema.

Notes

• Jorge suggests putting the charred chiles in a plastic bag or container so they sweat and soften, making it easier to remove the charred skin.
• Crema Mexicana is saltier than sour cream. You can find it in any Latino grocery store.