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A Tinga is an authentic Mexican recipe, which can be made with any meat, chicken, pork, lamb or beef.

We used chicken, cooked as a Tinga in a rich tomato, garlic and chipotle chilli sauce. The chilli gives a rich deep smoky flavour which is fabulous served with a crisp green salad, tortilla chip, salsa and guacamole.

Serves 4.

1tbs olive oil

2 onions, sliced

1tsp lazy garlic

2 – 3tsp Chipotle chilli paste

400g can chopped tomatoes

2tbs light soft brown sugar (or substitute, to taste, with sweetener)

6 boneless. Skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of any fat

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the salsa

1 small red onion, finely chopped

3 ripe tomatoes, finely chopped

1 lime, zested and juiced

1 small bunch fresh coriander, leaves and stalks finely chopped, plus extra leaves to garnish

Tortilla chips and guacamole to serve

Method

Preheat the oven to 180c, gas 4, 350f

Heat the oil in a large lidded non – stick flameproof casserole dish or saucepan. Fry the onions with a pinch of salt for 10 minutes, or until softened. Add the garlic and fry for 1 minute more.

Stir in the chipotle paste, tomatoes and sugar with half a can of water. Sit the chicken thighs in the sauce. Bring to a low simmer and cook covered for 20 minutes, stirring often, until the liquid has reduced slightly, place in the oven and cook gently for 1 hour until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced.

Using two forks, shred the chicken and stir it back through the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. If the sauce is too thin, return to the heat and simmer for 5 minutes until the sauce has reduced even more. To make the salsa, combine the red onion, tomatoes, lime zest and juice, coriander leaves and stalks. Season to taste.

Serve the chicken with the tomato salsa, tortilla chips, guacamole and a scattering of coriander leaves.