Chicken Smothered in Chile de Arbol Pipián Sauce

Grains, Poultry Entrees, Sauces and Dressings
Chicken and vegetables smothered in a chile de arbol pecan sauce and served over rice. mjskitchen.com @MJsKitchen

As promised in my last post, I’m sharing my recipe for Chicken and Vegetables smothered in Chile de Arbol Pipián Sauce. This dish is a complete meal and, if you’ve already made the sauce, it is a relatively quick and easy meal to throw together. Even through the sauce takes less than 30 minutes to make, I usually make it on the weekend, then all I have to do when I’m ready to make this meal, is chop, sauté and heat through. When I feel like a meatless meal, I leave out the chicken and just add larger amounts of the vegetables. It’s all good!

This meal consists of chicken, mushrooms, onions and bell peppers sautéed, then smothered in the chile de arbol pipián and served over rice. We’ve had it over white rice, brown rice and a wild/brown rice blend. The wild/brown rice blend is our favorite. It provides a crunchy texture and nutty flavor that complements the rest of the meal quite well. To round out the meal, you could add some fresh, chopped lettuce, cilantro, green onions, tomatoes, or sliced cucumber, whatever fits the mood. The following recipe yields 4 single servings, which gives us two complete meals. If you’re only serving for two, reduce the amount of chopped lettuce to 1 cup, then just chop more when you have the leftovers for another meal.

Chicken Smothered in Chile de Arbol Pipián

A deliciously healthy meal with chicken and vegetables smothered in a chile de arbol pecan sauce. @MJsKitchen mjskitchen.com
Chicken and Vegetables Smothered in Chile de Arbol Pipián Sauce
Prep
15 mins
Cook
30 mins
Total Time
45 mins
 

A hearty and spicy meal of chicken, mushrooms, onions and bell peppers smothered in a chile de arbol pipián (sauce) and served over rice. Prep and cook times do not include time to make the sauce.  It should be made the day before.

*See Kitchen Notes for more information, substitutions and links.

Course: Chicken, Meat Entree
Cuisine: Mexican, New Mexico
Keyword: chicken, chile sauce, meal, red chile
Yields: 4 servings
Recipe Author: MJ of MJ’s Kitchen
Ingredients
  • 1 – 2 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 6 large chicken tenders or 2 chicken breasts, each cut crosswise into 6 pieces
  • Black pepper
  • ½ large onion, thinly sliced
  • ½ large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • ~2 cups Chile de Arbol Pipián Sauce*
  • Salt to taste
  • 2 cups lettuce, cut into strips*
Topping Suggestions (Pick one or two)
  • Green onion with greens tops, minced
  • Red chile powder of choice (We like a sweet paprika)
  • Cucumber slices
  • Chopped tomatoes
  • Fresh cilantro
For the rice
  • For brown rice or a wild/brown rice blend* (See Kitchen Notes for link)
  • For White Rice
  • 2 cups water or chicken stock
  • 1 cup rice
  • Bring water to a boil. Add the rice, reduce heat to low and cook 20 minutes or until liquid is absorbed.
Instructions
Start the rice and let it simmer while you prepare the rest of the dish.
    To cook the chicken
    1. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat.
    2. Lightly pepper the chicken pieces. Add to the skillet and cook for 2 minutes per side. (Depending on the size of your skillet, you might need to cook the chicken in two batches.)
    3. Transfer the chicken from the skillet to a plate and set aside.
    4. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the onion and bell pepper. Saute’ for 2 minutes then add the mushrooms.
    5. Saute’, stirring occasionally until the mushrooms start to release their moisture.
    6. Add the chile de arbol sauce to the skillet and stir. Cover and let simmer for 5 minutes. NOTE: If the sauce gets too thick, add a little water.
    7. While the vegetables are simmering, use two forks (or your fingers) and pull the chicken pieces apart into bite size pieces.*
    8. Return the chicken to the skillet along with any liquid that is on the plate. Stir to coat the chicken with the sauce. Cover and simmer for 3 minutes.
    9. Taste. Add salt if needed.

    To Assemble
    1. Place a serving of rice in the bottom of a bowl.
    2. Top with some of the shredded lettuce.
    3. Top with desired amount of chicken mixture.
    4. Line the edge of the bowl with cucumber slices or tomatoes, and lightly salt.
    5. Sprinkle dish with paprika/chile powder, chopped cilantro, or chopped green onions if desired.
    Kitchen Notes

    Link to Chile de Arbol Pipián

     

    How to cook Wild Rice / Brown Rice using the pasta method.

     

    Lettuce – Romaine or iceberg work best because they hold up to the sauce and they don’t get too soggy.  I haven’t tried thinly shredded kale or savoy cabbage, but I think either one of those would also work.  The greens not only make this meal more nutritious, but adds another texture which we enjoy.

     

    Serving Method – As you can see from the pictures, there are actually two ways that you can serve this dish – smother everything in the pipián sauce (as shown above) or arrange the chicken and vegetables on top of the rice and scoop some of the sauce into the middle. 

     

    Vegetarian version – Replace the chicken with 2 cups large cooked beans (e.g., coronas, scarlet runners, kidney beans), a whole onion and bell pepper, and about 4 cups of mushrooms.

     

    Leftovers – Since it’s just the two of us, we always get two meals from this recipe.  Most times, we’ll just have it twice in one week.  But since it freezes so well, I’ve have been known to freeze it.  When I get ready to make it, all I have to do is thaw, reheat and make the rice.

    Looking for more delicious chicken and vegetables dishes? Here are some you’ll enjoy:

    59 Comments

    1. Pingback: Chile de Arbol Salsa | MJ's Kitchen

    2. This chili de arbol pecan sauce sounds amazing… hand me a spoon. 🙂

    3. Pingback: Chicken in Chile de Arbol Sauce | IMG Recipes: Food Recipes, Photos & Tips

    4. Wow !!! nutritious combo, exquisite recipe for my next Sunday.. Thank you MJ for sharing a wonderful dish. Happy Cooking !!!

    5. So glad you posted this and I finally got around to reading it. I am so behind!!!!!

    6. This looks great. I like that you can have it with our without the chicken. We’ll have to make this! Great pictures too!

    7. I think you and your hubby should open a restaurant. This dish with the sauce sound amazing. Talk about having a party in your mouth, this will do the trick. Great recipe!

      I’m about ready to throw in the towel on blogging. Everyone always has such stunning photos and I’m still struggling with mine. I can’t seem to figure it out and no one else knows how to either. I can’t wait until my pics look like yours.

      • What a sweet comment Vicki! Thanks!!! Actually when I was younger I did want to open a restaurant, but now I just see it as a lot of work. 🙂 Oh, please don’t throw in the towel on blogging. I LOVE what you dish up!!! Our blogs are not about the pictures, they are about the food and you dish up some GREAT food! In reference to my pictures, I cheat – I live with a professional photographer so I receive a lot of mentoring. He He. He has taught me well.

    8. Thanks for sharing this beautiful recipe. I love that sauce, looks so delicious with chicken and vegetables 🙂

    9. wow, looks delicious!!!
      the photograph is very stunning..
      did u’ve got foodgawker or tstespotting account???

      • Deby, thanks so much for your comment! I’m not a photographer so comments about my photos really put a smile on my face. 🙂 Yes, I do submit to the food porn sites and sometimes get accepted. 🙂

    10. It’s as if you were reading in my mind… I really loved the chile de arbol pecan sauce, so I’m thrilled to see this recipe (especially since chicken is my “default” meat). It looks amazing.

    11. This sounds fabulous, MJ! I love how you used the dark plate/bowl so that the food stands out and it looks beautiful. The pecan sauce? I don’t think I’ve tried something like that before and I’d love to taste it. I need to remember this sauce’s name. 😉

      • Thanks Nami! I have to admit that the black bowl was the third bowl I tried and, for the reason you mentioned, the one I chose. 🙂 I hope you get to try this sauce and dish for that matter. It’s quite different from your cuisine, but I think you would enjoy it.

    12. Could you please make this for me and FedEx it overnight? Seriously, this dish looks so delicious, MJ! Being a Mississippi boy, anything with pecans gets my attention. Such an unusual combination of ingredients and I’m totally intrigued. Great post, MJ!

      • I wish I could Bill. 🙂 Yep – growing up right next door to you in Louisiana gave me a love of pecans as well. We had a huge pecan tree in the backyard, so eating fresh pecans was easy, but it also spoiled me. I’m very picky. 🙂 Thanks for your comments Bill!

    13. That sauce looks AMAZING, Mj. What a lovely, comforting dish.

    14. Love those bowl, I like to do a taste test. Pecan sauce is awesome.

    15. I can already imagine how this would taste like! Nice recipe!

    16. I love the word “smothered” and your chicken is exactly what I picture when I hear it. MJ, this is such a fantastic recipe. Now I need to go buy some pecans to give it a try.

      • Thanks Nancy! As much as you enjoy chile de arbol, I’m sure you’d like this recipe. Hope you’re having a great weekend.

    17. What a gorgeous presentation! I’m off to check out your pecan sauce 🙂

    18. Hi MJ, thank you for your comments on my blog. I adore Mexican or South Western Foods but our repertoire for this cuisine is rather limited (chicken fajitas, guacamole, ceviche, Sopa Azteca and a couple of Mexican ‘inspired’ dips) so I’m going to be back to check out your blog to be inspired. Thanks again for dropping by my blog.

      • You are most welcome Eva and thanks for coming over to check out my kitchen. I hope you find a lot of flavors and dishes that you like here. Looking forward to sharing with you.

    19. That does look like a perfect meal!! Absolutely delicious!

    20. This dish looks so delicious, MJ! It looks like the flavors are all rich and hearty making this a meal that will delight the senses for sure. Thanks for sharing another great recipe!

    21. As soon as I buy more pumpkin seeds, I’m making your dish…it sounds great.

    22. I would love this for dinner tonight.

    23. I think I’d like it all mixed together and heavily sauced, thanks. 🙂

    24. Your chicken looks so rich and delicious! I love the nuttiness of the sauce especially 😀

      Cheers
      Choc Chip Uru

    25. MJ, this looks fantastic! I love chile de arbol and pecans, but I’ve never used them together in a recipe. We will try this soon! Thanks 🙂

    26. I want to come to your house for dinner! You’re really killing me with this one. We have a restaurant near us that features what they call “Cal-Mex” cuisine and this so reminds me of something they would have the menu there. Fabulous!

    27. First of all, let me pause for a moment to admire the perfection in the word “smothered” :). What an ideal use of your Chile de Arbol Pecan Sauce MJ — I like the smothered look best — that third photo is just dynamite. Gorgeous colour coming off the sauce and now I am *so* hungry!! (somehow my lunch plans don’t seem quite as exciting in comparison 😉 ). I must resurrect my wild rice! Sounds like the perfect marriage of flavours and textures.

      • Oh I am so with you Kelly – There’s just something something about “smothering”. I prefer the smothered version best as well, but sometimes Bobby wants to see what he’s eating so I do a deconstructed presentation. 🙂 The leftovers make a great lunch. Thanks for stopping by Darlin!

    28. I love everything about this dish, and ESPECIALLY the chile pecan sauce! This is my kind of spicy!

    29. I want that chili pecan sauce! This looks totally delicious, MJ.

    30. For some reason I would want to have this with vegetables. The photos are as amazing as ever. They just make you want a bite…

    31. Fun dish! And one that you can vary every time you make it — this just sort of cries out for playing a bit with ingredients. I like your idea of shredded cabbage, for instance. This is wonderful — thanks.

    32. That chile de arbol pecan sauce just sounds so amazing! I would love to give it a try! Awesome recipe!

    33. When I read all those wonderful sauces and ingredients that you put in your food, I wish I could grab them and try them in my kitchen. The dish sounds scrumptious.

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