Jalapeño Chicken Flautas with Creamy Guacamole

Well, hello there! Long time no see, old friend.

I know it’s been a ridiculously long amount of time since my last post, and I swear I’ll do better about making time to post some good recipes!

Rob is laid up in bed with a double-whammy: bronchitis & pneumonia. I feel so bad for him, but he’s doped up on antibiotics, cough suppressant & steroids, so he should be better soon. Meanwhile, I’ve been working my tail off & cooking as little as possible. I think I’ve gotten my groove back, so tonight I set out to make something I’ve never conquered before: flautas.

Flautas are similar to chimichangas but thinner in size…and sort of like taquitos, but rolled up with flour tortillas instead of corn tortillas. I also have a pork taquito recipe I’ll make sometime this week, so make sure to tune in for that recipe.

Anyway, back to flautas. Flautas are deep fried, rolled-up, gooey, cheesy, chicken delights. This recipe makes about a dozen—probably more, though, because I ate a TON of the filling before having a chance to roll it up…it’s THAT good. I stumbled upon this recipe on foodnetwork.com, and it did not disappoint!

You should definitely take a crack at it…it only takes about 30 minutes (prep to serve) and is a Mexican treat the whole family can enjoy. Tired of Taco Tuesday’s? Try Flauta Friday’s! 🙂

Jalapeño Chicken Flautas with Creamy Guac

1 whole rotisserie chicken, meat taken off bone and shredded
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 jalapeños, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup salsa
1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese
1 lime, juiced
Flour tortillas (small), about 20 (just in case)
Vegetable oil
2 avocados
1 lime, juiced
Salt
1/4 cup sour cream
Cilantro sprigs, for garnish

In large skillet, heat 2 TBS. Butter over medium heat. Add onion and jalapeño, staute until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.
Add cumin, cayenne, and garlic. Stir well, cook until fragrant (about two minutes). Add chicken & salsa, and cook until well-mixed (another 2-3 minutes).
Remove from heat & add cheese, cilantro & lime juice. Stir until well mixed and cheese is melted.
In large pot, fill with enough oil to go up about 1 1/2-2 inches up the side of the pot (it won’t look like much oil). Heat oil on medium heat until hot, around 350-375 degrees.
Place a heaping spoonful of chicken mixture in the middle of each tortilla. Roll up tightly, making sure no filling has squeezed out of the sides. Put a toothpick through each rolled up Flauta to hold together.
Working one at a time and with tongs, place Flauta into hot oil. Hold with tongs in oil until firm, and then let go. Cook about 1-2 minutes for each Flauta, making sure to flip in oil to brown all sides. Flautas will be done when they are a nice golden brown.
For creamy Guac, mash the two avocados and add sour cream. Stir well, then add lime juice & salt (to taste). If you’re feeling frisky, or you love cilantro as much as I do, add some finely chopped cilantro to the Guac, and put a few sprigs on top for garnish.