Shredded Chicken Burritos

It's been a while... again.  I know that I've said before that I was going to get better about blogging more often, and while I meant it wholeheartedly, time constraints and lack of energy have kept me away.  (They've also led to a lot of eating out, which needs to stop!)  However, I am now enjoying the bliss that is Maternity Leave!  Now that I've caught up on sleep, I'm cooking and cooking, and planning to cook more.  While I'm not naive enough to believe that this surge of cooking will last throughout my entire leave, I do plan on making the most out of my pre-baby time by cooking, (and blogging) up a storm!

Tonight's dinner: Shredded Chicken Burritos.

Last night, when I was making my grocery list/hunting for recipes that looked like good starting points, I ended up quite disappointed.  Most, perhaps all, of the recipes that I found online for chicken burritos, (even slow-cooker versions), relied on packets of taco seasoning and/or jars of salsa for flavor.  I was very discouraged, to say the least.  While I love some jarred salsas, (chips and salsa= one of my favorite snacks) and have been known to use taco seasoning at times, I really wanted authentic flavor and less sodium!  (I'm not a fan of the swelling that comes along with pregnancy and salt intake... eg. cankles).  So, I decided to make it up.  I used mojo flavors as a starting point and then added the tomatoey, spicy stuff later on... the end result was delicious shredded chicken!!

Mexican Shredded Chicken 


1.25 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breast, whole
1 15oz. can low-sodium chicken broth
1 lime
1/2 lemon
1 orange
3 bay leaves
1 tsp.* Kosher salt, (or to taste)
1 tsp.* ground black pepper
1 tbsp.* oregano
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
2 8oz. cans Goya seasoned tomato sauce
1 4.5oz. can chopped green chiles
1 tbsp.* cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper

Squeeze juice of lime, orange and 1/2 of lemon into a large saucepan.  Add chicken broth, bay leaves, salt, pepper, oregano and garlic, (taste and add more salt/pepper if desired).  Place whole chicken breasts into pot, making sure there is adequate liquid.  Cook on medium heat for 30 minutes, allowing to simmer, then turn to low heat for additional 30 minutes.  Remove chicken from cooking liquid and place in large bowl; shred chicken with two forks.  Empty cooking liquid from pot.  Return shredded chicken to pot, and add tomato sauce, green chiles, cumin, chili powder and cayenne pepper.  Place on low heat to warm.

(*Measurements are approximate)

Since the plan for tonight was burritos, I made some rice, (I used basmati because I had it and it happens to be our favorite), shredded some cheddar cheese, chopped some lettuce and had low-fat sour cream and tortillas ready to go.  We kept it simple- I decided to forgo beans tonight, although they would made an excellent addition, along with whatever else you usually like in your burritos.

The chicken was perfectly moist and flavorful and was a great for our burritos!  I'm looking forward to having some of the leftovers for lunch tomorrow, and I will definitely be making it again!!

I hope that you and your families will enjoy this recipe, let me know what you think!