Hatch chilies are a special class of chillies from Hatch Valley New Mexico. If you like to know more about these fabulous chilles read about it here and here. Fresh Hatch chillies are available from August through September in most grocery stores and now available frozen in stores like Trader Joes, WholeFoods and similar stores. If you can’t find them or they’re out of season use about 3-4 medium sized Poblano peppers for this recipe.
Hatch Chile Verde Stew is warm, cozy, smoky, brothy, slightly tangy and makes a very satisfying meal to enjoy on a chilly day. It starts by charring the chillies, onions and then blending them with jalapeño, cilantro, garlic, boiled tomatillo into a sauce that is then added to tender pieces of chicken, white beans, potato to make a hearty stew.
I used boneless skinless chicken thighs, though I later realized with bones it would have been more flavorful. It is best served with rice topped with a lot of fresh garnishes. By adding extra stock this recipe makes a delicious green tortilla soup. I love both versions. We start by sautéing the chicken, potato, then add the broth to cook low and slow on the stovetop. Simmering until the chicken and potato is almost cooked and tender + you’ll end up with a delicious base with rich intense chicken broth. Next add the green chili sauce and heat through along with white beans. Thats it! It’s comforting, a little spicy, a little tangy, can be served on its own as a soup or, over rice, with tortillas chips for crunch.
INGREDIENTS
- Chicken thighs – Boneless, skinless chicken thighs are preferred as they have great flavor and don’t dry out like chicken breasts. For this recipe I also added white beans and a potato for bulk and a little plant based balance. For vegetarian or vegan option replace chicken with cauliflower, potato, white beans or mushrooms ( I have only tried this recipe with chicken so can’t vouch for the result, but I’m sure its delicious with only vegetables).
- Tomatillos – Tomatillos are tomato lookalike green fruit with a papery outer skin. They’re not tomatoes, but belong to the nightshade family. Tomatillos are tangy, tart and juicy, used in many Mexican recipes like salsas, verde sauces and more. They’re normally charred or boiled before using them in recipes.
- Hatch Chile peppers – These peppers are special chillies that are grown in Hatch valley, New Mexico, available fresh in August through September. With a cult following these peppers range from mild to xx.hot and grill beautifully with a delicious smoky flavor. Learn more about it here and here. Best substitute are poblanos.
- Hot Peppers– Serrano, or Jalapeño is used primarily for heat. Omit or deseed for milder flavor.
- Onion and garlic – These flavor makers add lots of depth and body. Unlike many of my recipes where we saute, we will roast them and blend it along with tomatillos and peppers to make the green chile sauce.
- Lime juice – To add balance, tangy flavor to play with the heat from the jalapeño.
- Cilantro, Avocado, green onions– these add a wonderful fresh flavor as a garnish and for aesthetically beautiful.
Chicken Hatch Chile Verde Stew
Ingredients
- 6-8 mild Hatch Chili peppers or 3-4 Poblano peppers
- 1 pound tomatillo, husk removed
- 1-3 serrano or jalapeño for heat deseed or use fewer for mild stew
- ½ cup chopped cilantro
- 2 medium white or yellow onions, quartered
- 4-6 cloves garlic, you’ll need 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs cubed into small pieces
- 1 medium potato cubed
- 1 14 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp dried oregano Mexican prefrebaly
- 1-2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2-4 cups chicken broth 4 cups for soup and 2 for stew
- 2-3 scoops Vital proteins collagen this adds some extra nutrients without changing the flavor of the stew
- cooked rice to serve
- tortilla chips to serve
Garnishes
- 1 avocado, diced
- 2 spring onion, chopped
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- Mexican hot sauce
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place lightly oiled Hatch peppers or poblano, quartered onions, jalapeños or serrano peppers on the baking sheet. Set the tray directly under the broiler on high heat. Broil for 5 minutes, or until the skin is charred and blistered. Carefully flip over the onions and peppers, broil for another 5 minutes, or until the skin is blackened and blistered on all sides.
- Remove from the oven, loosely cover to keep the steam in for 5 minutes. Remove the skin off the peppers as much as possible, they usually slip off easily. Chop and save with its juice.
- Bring a pot of water or broth to boil with the tomatillo just enough to cover them. Steam for 5 minutes so they’re just soft. Lift the tomatillos out, save the water, Dice the onions add it to a blender along with minced garlic, hatch peppers, cilantro, tomatillo and jalapeño. Blend until smooth. Set aside until ready to use.
- Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and season with salt, ground cumin and oregano. Sear the chicken on all sides, turning occasionally. Add the potato, broth saved from the tomatillo as needed and bring it to a gentle simmer. Cook for 25-30 minutes until the chicken is fully cooked.
- Pour in the chile verde sauce and white beans. Mix thoroughly. Cover, bring it to a simmer for 5-7 minutes, add more broth if needed. Turn the heat off add the lime juice stir to combine. Taste and season if needed. Serve with garnishes, steamed rice and tortilla chips.
Notes
- Omit hot peppers like serrano, jalapenos if you want the stew to be mild, using fewer than recommended and deseeding the hot peppers help reduce the heat too.
- A quick hack to save on time: substitute the chicken thighs with leftover cooked chicken, simply shred the cooked chicken or better still store-bought rotisserie chicken shredded is a common substitute many recipes call for.
- Make this vegetarian or vegan swap out the meat for more potatoes, white beans, cubed tofu vegetables like cauliflower mushrooms and kale!
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