Chicken Gorditas Tex-Mex Style

Ok, my love affair with Mexican and Tex Mex has caused me to love to eat and make Gorditas....My favorite place to get them is down in Historic Market Square from one of the street vendors.....Pretty hard to pass up a $3.00 meal!.....Goes perfectly with the beer you can drink while shopping there.....they keep it simple downtown, meat or beans, cheese, lettuce and Guacamole.....and of course hot sauce on the side......Well it inspired me to surf through some of my Mexican Cookbooks to find a traditional gordita recipe.....The filling I made up on my own and still may need some tweaking.....but for a first run at it.....it turned out pretty good....I am posting it so I won't forget what I did.....We have had these twice now and I just love them.....the corn taste is so good....I Love "Little Fat Ones".....

Chicken Filling: Makes enough for a few meals

2 lbs of Boneless Chicken Meat (I used a combo of Thighs and Breasts)

1 14.5 oz can of Diced Tomatoes w/Zesty Jalapenos

1 Sweet Onion, Finely Chopped

1 Jalapeno, Finely Chopped

2-3 Cloves of Garlic, Minced
Juice of 1 Lime

1-2 tsp Cumin

1-2 tsp Chile Powder

1/4-1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1 tsp Paprika

Salt & Pepper

Put all ingredients into a crock pot and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Chicken is ready when it easily shreds and falls apart. Once ready shred meat in crock pot. It will be juicy, so use tongs to serve in gorditas, tacos, enchiladas or burritos.

GORDITAS: Makes 10 small/med pockets

1 3/4 C Masa Harina (Instant Corn Masa Flour)

1 C + 2 T Warm Water

1/3 C All Purpose Flour

1 scant teaspoon Baking Powder

3/4 tsp Salt

Garnishes

Cheese

Cilantro, chopped

Lettuce/Cabbage, mixed or your favorite

Guacamole

Hot Sauce or Salsa

Lime Wedges

Making the Dough

Mix masa with the warm water. Knead the masa to make it soft cookie dough consistency, adding more water if needed. (I usually add 1-2 tablespoons more) Knead in flour, baking powder, and salt. Divide dough into 10 portions and roll into balls. Cover with plastic to keep moist and to keep from drying out.

Heat a non stick oil rubbed griddle or pan over medium heat.

The next step is flattening out. If you have a tortilla press (I do not) it works best because it gives the most even disks, be sure to line with plastic on both sides. Gently Press a ball of dough to 4 inch diameter and it should be about 1/4 inch thick. If you do not have a tortilla press here is another easy way to do it. Place a piece of plastic (plastic wrap or plastic cut from a plastic storage bad) on the counter. Wrap a flat bottom dinner plate with plastic, place 1 ball of dough on the plastic wrap and place wrapped dinner plate on top of dough ball. Gently and evenly press ball flat to about 4 inch diameter and 1/4 inch thick. My dinner plates actually have a 1/4 inch lip and 5 inch diameter on the bottom so it works perfectly. Place flattened gordita on griddle and cook for 1 1/2 min and then flip and cook another 1 1/2 min. The gordita will be lightly browned but still uncooked. Remove to a plate and continue pressing and griddle cooking the remaining gorditas. Finished product should look like this:

Finishing the Gorditas

In a deep heavy skillet or saucepan, heat 1/2 inch oil over medium to medium high heat until oil is hot enough to make the edge of a gordita sizzle sharply (about 350 degrees). One by one fry gorditas turning them after 15 seconds nicely crisp but not hard. The total fry time should not be longer then 45 seconds. When they are ready most will have puffed up a little like pita bread. Drain on paper towels.

Once they are all fried use a small knife to cut a slit in the edge of each one about halfway around its circumference, making a pocket. Fill with about 1/4 cup of chicken and garnish with your favorites.