Layered Tortillas with Chicken and Chili

4 Reviews
100% would make this recipe again

Layers of tortillas with a mixture of peppers, tomato sauce, ground chicken, and grated cheese, baked in the oven.

«Pastel de pobre» or «Torta Azteca» is the name of this tasty Mexican specialty, which is often a creative way to use up whatever is left in the refrigerator. As with many of my Mexican recipes, I owe this one to a fellow student with me while at École Polytechnique, Maria del Pilar.

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Preparation : 20 min Cooking : 40 min
550 calories/serving

Ingredients

2 onions, finely chopped 400 g
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 yellow or red sweet peppers, cut into bite-size pieces 200 g
2 tbsp butter, unsalted 28 g
2 tbsp canola oil 30 mL
3/4 cup canned tomatoes (diced) 190 g
460 g ground chicken, or ground turkey
1/4 cup cream cheese 35 g
1/2 cup chicken broth 125 mL
2 tsp tomato paste 12 g
1 tsp ground cumin 3 g
1 tsp cayenne pepper 3 g
1 tsp dried oregano 1 g
1 pinch salt [optional] 0.2 g
ground pepper to taste [optional]
5 corn tortillas 220 g
1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, grated 40 g
aluminum foil, to cover the dish

Before you start

If you wish to prepare your own ground chicken, combine 2/3 of boneless thighs with 1/3 boneless breast. It can be chopped using a knife or a food processor, depending on the texture desired.

Method

Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F.

Cook the filling

  1. Peppers and meat are cooked separately then blended into one filling before assembling the «torta».
  2. Prepare the vegetables: finely chop the onion and mince the garlic; cut the peppers into bite-size pieces.
  3. Heat half of the butter and oil in a pan over medium heat. Add half of the onion and garlic then sauté 4-5 min until lightly coloured and soft, paying attention not to let them burn. Add the peppers and sauté 4-5 min, then add the diced tomatoes.
  4. Cook over low heat, covered, about 15 min until the peppers are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste.
  5. Meanwhile, heat the remaining butter and oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining onion and garlic then sauté 4-5 min, with stirring, until the onion is translucent. Add the meat and sear about 4-5 min until it looses its pink colour, then break it up with a fork. In order to brown the meat, it is important not to stir it at the beginning, otherwise it will loose its juices and will «boil» rather than brown.
  6. When the meat is golden-coloured, add the cream cheese, broth, tomato paste, spices and oregano. Cover and cook over medium-low heat about 5-7 min, until the flavours are blended. Add salt and pepper to taste. Combine the chicken mixture with the peppers.

Assemble and cook the «torta»

  1. Place a first tortilla in a buttered ovenproof dish. Put some filling on top, sprinkle with some grated Cheddar, then cover with a second tortilla. Continue this layering sequence according to the number of tortillas in the ingredient list, until the filling is completely incorporated. Press down lightly on the top tortilla at each new layer. Finish with additional grated Cheddar on top of the last tortilla.
  2. Cover with a lid or greased aluminum foil (so that it does not stick to the top) then bake 20 min in the middle of the oven. Uncover and cook an additional 20-25 min. For a nice crust, turn on the top broiler for the last 2 minutes.
  3. Take the dish out of the oven and let it rest 5 min before cutting up the «torta» into pie-shaped slices. Serve.

Observations

The filling can be prepared in advance. The «torta» can then be assembled and baked just before serving.

Nutrition Facts Table

per 1 serving (390 g)

Amount

% Daily Value

Calories

550

Fat

30 g

45 %

Saturated 7.1 g
+ Trans 0.3 g

37 %

Cholesterol

110 mg

Sodium

300 mg

12 %

Carbohydrate

42 g

14 %

Fibre

6 g

22 %

Sugars

7 g

Net Carbs

36 g

Protein

30 g

Vitamin A

44 %

Vitamin C

152 %

Calcium

23 %

Iron

28 %
More info

DIABETES Exchange

1 serving of this recipe is equivalent to :
Food Group Exchanges
Starches 1 ½
Vegetables 2 ½
Meat and Alternatives 3
Fats 3
More info
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4 Reviews (4 with rating only) 100% would make this recipe again

My Notes

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This space is reserved for your personal notes on the recipe. These notes are private and will only be visible to you. Here's an example of what these notes could say for a given recipe:

  • I replaced oregano by rosemary and it turned out great
  • use my large pan with the copper bottom
  • leave under the grill 3 minutes instead of 1 to get a golden crust

This recipe is in the following categories

Cheese | Poultry | Main courses/Entrées | High Iron | Mexican

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