How to Make Mojo Chicken Tortas

Makes: 4 tortas

Preparation time: 1 ½ hrs

Cooking time: 2 hr 15 mins

Ingredients needed to make Mojo Chicken Tortas:

For the mojo marinade:

• 1 ½ lb boneless chicken breasts, skinned and flattened into ½’’ thick pieces
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• Juice of 2 limes
• Juice of 2 oranges
• Finely grated zest of 1 orange
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp canola oil

For the carrot slaw:

• 4 large carrots, grated
• ½ tsp agave nectar
• 3 tbsp white distilled vinegar
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For grilling:

• 2 bunchs scallions
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For sandwich:

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup charred salsa
• 4 telera rolls, buttered and griddled

For the charred salsa:

• 12 oz large tomatillos, husks removed and cleaned
• 2 plum tomatoes
• 1 poblano chile
• 1 small yellow onion, unpeeled and quartered
• 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
• 1 dried ancho chile
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves
• Juice of 1 lime
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 tsp agave nectar

Cooking instructions for Mojo Chicken Tortas:

• To make the salsa, warm up a large outdoor grill over hot charcoal fire.
• Arrange the tomatillos, plum tomatoes, garlic, onion and chiles on top of the hot grate and grill for several minutes, turning them from time to time, until they char evenly and blacken.
• Transfer the ancho chile into a bowl and pour hot water into it until the chile is covered.
• Let it soak for 10 minutes or until they soften and chop off the stem.
• Remove the seeds and dump it into a food processor.
• Process the charred poblano in a similar fashion and place it into the processor.
• Remove the skins and stem from the onion as well as garlic cloves and throw them into the same processor.
• Add rest of both kinds of tomatoes, cilantro, lime juice as well as agave nectar into the processor and pulse them into a smooth puree.
• Sprinkle a dash of seasonings into the puree and scrap it out into a bowl; set aside until required.
• To make the marinade, place the citrus juices, orange zest, onions, garlic, chili powder, salt and ground cumin into a bowl and drizzle the oil over them.
• Stir them all together until well combined and pour it into a resealable plastic bag.
• Stuff the chicken into it, seal and flip it several times to coat well; refrigerate overnight to marinate.
• To make the slaw, toss all its ingredients into a bowl and give it a nice stir to mix properly; set aside.
• For grilling, reheat the grill to moderately high heat and grease the grate with a tbsp oil.
• Drain the chicken out from the marinade and place them on the hot grill grate.
• Cook each side for 6-8 minutes, or until the grill patterns on both sides and remove from heat; allow to cool for 5 minutes and carve out thin slices.
• Place the scallions in a bowl and pour 1 tbsp canola oil over it.
• Sprinkle a pinch each of salt and freshly ground black pepper over them.
• Toss them well together until well mixed and grill them until they are evenly seared; chop into thin slices.
• To assemble the sandwich, spread a tbsp of mayonnaise onto the bottom half of the roll and arrange the sliced chicken on top.
• Top it up with the prepared salsa as well as carrot slaw and sprinkle the grilled scallions on top.
• Place the top half of the roll on top to cover and cut it diagonally into halves.
• Serve right away.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons