Copycat Chipotle Chicken

This at-home Chipotle Chicken recipe is full of smokey adobo flavors and plenty of spice. Made with the advice of former Chipotle employees, this is as close to the real thing as you can get!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword chicken, chipotle, Grilled meats

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 25

Marinating time 2

Servings people

Calories 497kcal

Author Michael Kahn

Equipment

1 Small skillet
1 food processor or blender
q cast iron or stainless steel pan

Ingredients

1 pound chicken thighs boneless/skinless

Adobo Marinade

½ ounce | 14g dried morita chipotle chiles
½ cup | 118ml boiling water
½ teaspoon | 2.5ml Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base reduced sodium
1 crushed garlic clove
1 tablespoon | 15ml distilled white vinegar
2 tablespoons | 30ml neutral oil
½ teaspoon | 2.5ml ground cumin
½ teaspoon | 2.5ml dried Mexican oregano crushed in the palm of your hand
½ teaspoon | 2.5ml ground black pepper

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Toast the dried chipotle chiles in a small skillet over medium heat until fragrant and skin begins to bubble, flipping frequently to avoid burning. This should take about 5 minutes. Transfer chiles to cutting board and let them cool off until you can handle them. Remove the seeds from at least one chile. More if you want it less spicy. Remove any thick stems from the chiles.
Meanwhile, mix boiling water and Better Than Bouillon in heat-proof container, set aside.
Add the all chiles to bouillon and allow to soften for at least 5 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Add the chiles, bouillon, and all remaining adobo ingredients to a high powered blender or food processor and blend until very smooth, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides as needed.
Add chicken to a bowl and pour adobo over chicken, then using gloves, mix thoroughly to combine, ensuring chicken is completely covered in adobo. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, ideally 24 hours.
Preheat 2 tablespoons of a high smoke point oil in a stainless steel, carbon steel, or cast iron pan over medium high heat, until oil just begins to smoke. Make sure to turn on the vent/range hood and open some windows, this will create a "pepper spray" effect. Working with one piece of chicken at a time, remove from marinade, let any excess marinade drip back into bowl, and carefully lay flat-side down into hot oil. It is okay to crowd the pan, but you may have to work in batches depending on how much chicken you are cooking and how big your pan is. Cook over medium-high heat until the first side is well-charred (spotty black, but not fully black), 5-10 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until second side is well-charred, 5-10 minutes. You want to err on the side of overcooking here.
Once chicken is fully cooked and both sides are well-charred, transfer to a clean bowl and allow to rest for just 5 minutes. Once rested, move to cutting board, cut length-wise into 1/2-3/4" strips, then align strips and cut perpendicular into 1/2-3/4" cubes. Move all cubes and any juices back into bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and allow to sit for at least 15 minutes. This step is crucial. Before serving, mix everything up to coat the chicken in all of the juices.

Nutrition