Salpicón de Pollo Salad

To make the vinaigrette, whisk together the vinegar, lime juice, chipotle in adobo sauce, brine from pickled jalapeños, salt, pepper, brown sugar, garlic and both oils. Whisk until emulsified, taste and adjust the salt. Add the red onion and let macerate as you prepare the rest of the salad. You can also make it in advance and have it in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Bring salted water to a boil in a medium saucepan. One vegetable at a time, cook the carrots, potatoes, and green peas until tender: 3 to 4 minutes for the carrots, 4 to 5 minutes for the potatoes, 1 to 2 minutes for the peas. As you move on, remove with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl. When it has cooled, incorporate the nopalitos.

Whisk the vinaigrette well. Toss the lettuce with some of it and set aside. Mix the shredded chicken with some of it and set aside. Toss the cooked vegetables with some of it and set aside.

In a large platter, spoon the lettuce as the bottom layer, arrange the chicken in the middle, and the vegetables on the sides. Garnish with radishes, avocado and in the corners, add the pickled jalapeños and chipotles in adobo. You can drizzle any remaining vinaigrette over the top. Serve with warm corn tortillas and your guests can eat the salad on its own, or tuck parts of it into tacos! I add avocado, mash it, top with chicken and veggies and top with both, pickled jalapeños and chipotles.

Ingredients

2/3 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons sauce from La Costeña Chipotles in Adobo Sauce
2 tablespoons brine from La Costeña Sliced Pickled Jalapeños
1 teaspoon kosher salt, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
2/3 cup olive oil
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2/3 cup finely slivered red onion
2 medium carrots (1/4 pound), peeled, halved lengthwise, and sliced into half-moons
3 medium red potatoes (about 1 pound), peeled and cubed
1 cup fresh peas, or thawed from frozen
1 cup La Costeña Nopalitos, drained
1 large head romaine, leaves separated, washed, dried, sliced into bite sized pieces
6 cups shredded cooked chicken, or from rotisserie chicken
3 large radishes, halved and thinly sliced into half-moons
1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, and sliced
1 can La Costeña Sliced Pickled Jalapeños
1 can La Costeña Chipotles in Adobo Sauce
Warm corn tortillas

Author

Pati Jinich

Born and raised in Mexico City, Pati is host of the 3x James Beard Award-winning PBS television series “Pati’s Mexican Table” and the PBS primetime docuseries “La Frontera.” She is resident chef at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington, D.C., and a cookbook author.