Tamarind Chicken: Pollo al Tamarindo

Karen Hursh Graber

Mexican Kitchen

Tamarind chicken has become a Mexican restaurant standard in the past few years. This can also be made with duck breasts.

Ingredients

4 chicken breast halves
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ medium white onion, finely chopped
4 chiles de arbol, seeded and crushed
½ cup white wine
¼ cup tamarind pulp
1 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons flour

Preparation

Salt and pepper the chicken breasts. Heat the olive oil in a heavy bottomed 12-14″ inch skillet and cook the chicken for 4 minutes on each side. Remove to a plate, cover and keep warm.

Add the garlic, onion and chile to the pan and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the wine, and continue stirring to pick up any brown bits in the pan, until the wine is reduced by half.

Add the tamarind pulp and chicken broth and stir to combine the mixture thoroughly.

In a small bowl, mix the butter and flour to form a paste (called a beurre manié). Whisk the paste into the pan and continue whisking until the sauce is thickened to the consistency of heavy cream.

Return the chicken to the pan, with any juices that have collected on the plate, and cook another 2-3 minutes. Serve the chicken immediately, with the sauce spooned over. Makes 4 servings.