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Video recipe

About this recipe

✨

Recipe highlight

Why you’ll love it

Smoky poblano, juicy grilled chicken, creamy avocado and crunchy pepitas meet a sharp cilantro-lime dressing — fresh enough for lunch, substantial enough for dinner. 🥑🔥

Ingredients

• Chile-lime chicken 🍗
• 🍗 600 g boneless skinless chicken thighs (1.3 lb)
• 🍋 30 ml fresh lime juice (2 tbsp / 1 fl oz)
• 🫒 15 ml olive or avocado oil (1 tbsp / 0.5 fl oz)
• 🌶️ 1 tsp ancho chile powder
• 🌿 ½ tsp ground cumin
• 🌿 ½ tsp Mexican oregano
• 🧄 10 g garlic, finely grated (2 cloves / 0.35 oz)
• 🧂 ¾ tsp fine sea salt
• ⚫ ¼ tsp black pepper
• Roasted poblano 🌶️
• 🌶️ 2 large poblano peppers
• 🫒 5 ml olive oil (1 tsp)
• 🧂 Small pinch fine sea salt
• Salad 🥗
• 🥬 300 g romaine lettuce, chopped (10.6 oz)
• 🍅 250 g cherry tomatoes, halved (8.8 oz)
• 🌶️ 120 g radishes, thinly sliced (4.2 oz)
• 🥑 2 ripe avocados, sliced
• 🧅 80 g red onion, very thinly sliced (½ medium / 2.8 oz)
• 🧀 100 g queso fresco, crumbled (3.5 oz)
• 🎃 40 g pepitas, toasted (¼ cup / 1.4 oz)
• 🌿 Fresh cilantro leaves
• Cilantro-lime dressing 🍋
• 🌿 30 g fresh cilantro (about 1 packed cup / 1 oz)
• 🍋 60 ml fresh lime juice (¼ cup / 2 fl oz)
• 🫒 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil (¼ cup / 2 fl oz)
• 🌶️ ½ jalapeño, roughly chopped
• 🍯 10 ml agave syrup or honey (2 tsp)
• 🧄 1 small garlic clove
• 🌿 ¼ tsp ground cumin
• 🧂 ½ tsp fine sea salt
• ⚫ ¼ tsp black pepper
• 💧 15–30 ml cold water, as needed (1–2 tbsp)
• To finish ✨
• 🍋 Lime wedges
• 🌶️ Extra sliced jalapeño, optional
• 🎃 Extra pepitas
• 🧀 Extra queso fresco

Preparation

• 1 Marinate the chicken 🍗 Combine lime juice, oil, ancho chile powder, cumin, oregano, garlic, salt and black pepper. Add the chicken and coat thoroughly. Let stand for 15 minutes while preparing the vegetables.
• 2 Roast the poblanos 🌶️ Place the poblanos directly over a gas flame, under a hot broiler or in a dry cast-iron skillet. Turn until the skins are blistered and blackened on all sides.
• 3 Steam and peel 🔥 Transfer the hot poblanos to a covered bowl for 10 minutes. Peel away most of the blackened skin, remove the stems and seeds, then slice into thin strips. Toss with olive oil and a small pinch of salt.
• 4 Make the dressing 🍋 Add cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, jalapeño, agave, garlic, cumin, salt and black pepper to a blender. Blend until bright green and mostly smooth. Add cold water gradually until pourable.
• 5 Toast the pepitas 🎃 Place the pepitas in a dry skillet over medium heat. Toast for 2–3 minutes, shaking frequently, until fragrant and beginning to pop. Remove immediately from the skillet.
• 6 Cook the chicken 🔥 Heat a grill pan or heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken for approximately 5–6 minutes per side until browned and cooked through. Transfer to a clean board and rest for 5 minutes.
• 7 Build the salad base 🥬 Arrange the chopped romaine on a large serving plate. Add cherry tomatoes, radishes and thin red onion.
• 8 Add the poblano 🌶️ Scatter the roasted poblano strips across the salad. Their smoky flavor should be distributed throughout rather than concentrated in one section.
• 9 Slice the chicken 🍗 Slice the rested chicken across the grain into thick strips. Arrange while still warm over the cold salad base.
• 10 Add the creamy and crunchy elements 🥑 Add avocado slices, crumbled queso fresco and toasted pepitas. Drizzle generously with the cilantro-lime dressing.
• 11 Finish and serve ✨ Top with fresh cilantro, extra pepitas and optional jalapeño. Serve immediately with lime wedges and remaining dressing on the side.

Timing details

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