Happy Cinco de Mayo! This recipe repost is the 5th of May appropriate, double delicious, and a reader favorite. Blackened Salmon and Ranch Chicken Soft Tacos are a Cinco de Mayo 2-for-1 ~ a culinary happy hour special.
Last week I was thumbing through an issue of Woman’s Day when the above photo caught my eye. My first thought was “These look good!” My second thought was, “Hey, I think I have all the ingredients to make these except the salmon, romaine lettuce, and cilantro.” It was time play the culinary home version of I Spy in the Places In The Home test kitchen. I spy a package of ranch dressing mix, chicken breasts, fresh spinach, fresh limes, sour cream and flour tortillas. Oh yeah, Ranch Chicken Soft Tacos is on the menu. Where there’s a meal, there’s a way!
Blackened Salmon Soft Tacos
Ingredients
1 1 ¼ pound(s) piece skinless salmon fillet, cut into 4 pieces
2 tablespoon(s) blackening spice mix or Cajun seasoning (no salt added)
½ small head romaine lettuce, thinly sliced (about 4 cups)
½ cup fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
Kosher salt and pepper
8 small flour tortillas, warmed
Low fat sour cream, for serving
Directions
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Coat both sides of the salmon with the seasoning mix and cook, covered, until opaque throughout and blackened, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, toss together the lettuce, cilantro, oil, lime juice, and ¼ tsp each salt and pepper.
Flake the salmon into pieces. If desired, spread sour cream on the tortillas, then fill with the salmon and top with the lettuce mixture.
Ranch Chicken Soft Tacos
Ingredients
1 tablespoon(s) olive oil
4 boneless,skinless chicken breast
1 medium onion; chopped
1 14 oz. can chicken broth
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
½ small container fresh washed spinach
½ tsp. black pepper
¼ tsp. minced garlic
8 small flour tortillas
1 fresh lime, sliced
sour cream, for serving
Directions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Peel and chop onion, add to oil, and cook until translucent.
Place chicken breast in skillet with onions. Saute over medium high heat until chicken is lightly browned on both sides. The onions will now be reaching the caramelized stage.
Add ranch dressing mix, pepper and garlic, coating chicken breasts. Slowly pour chicken broth into skillet, stirring to deglaze onions and seasonings from bottom of skillet. Mixture will thicken as it cooks.
Cover and simmer on medium low for approximately 30 minutes or until chicken is tender. Cut cooked chicken breast crosswise into thin slices. Warm flour tortillas by desired method. I warm each tortilla individually in the microwave for 15 seconds. Fill centers with chicken and spinach and fold sides of tortillas over center. Top with sour cream. Squeeze fresh lime over taco and add additional black pepper if desired.
