Chicken Tacos with Peach Summer Slaw

Ground chicken tacos are on heavy rotation here because I always have ground chicken and tortillas in the freezer. The toppings are a matter of what is fresh from my garden or what I have in the pantry or freezer. High-quality ground chicken isn’t wildly available in the Northwoods, so I usually have it shipped to me, this time from Force of Nature. Sometimes, I will grind my own from the whole chickens I buy in Michigan (Whitney Creek Farm). Tortillas are the next most important ingredient. Sometimes I don’t want to make everything from scratch. I can’t say enough about these tortillas from Caramelo Tortillas in Kansas. They are Sonoran-style tortillas, and they taste like you are sitting on a beach in Mexico. They’re made fresh and shipped (usually a 6-week lead time), but they are worth the wait. I keep them in the freezer for months. In this publication, I want to share as many product recommendations as I can because items like this make it so easy to whip up delicious meals when you are not near a gourmet grocery store. Ok, back to the tacos…

A farm up in Bayfield, WI called Rabideaux’s Orchard brings in Palisade peaches from Colorado every summer, and I stock up when they’re in. Real peach season is short and worth planning around. I lived in Colorado for 16 years, so I was completely spoiled and learned what good peaches should taste like.

You probably already know that ground meat tacos are a simple meal. A skillet, a little olive oil, Siete mild taco seasoning — that’s it. The seasoning does the work. Everything else in this recipe is about the slaw, which I built from what was in the fridge. It turned out to be the best part of the taco.

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground chicken

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• 1 packet Siete mild taco seasoning

• Tortillas (Caramelo (or other good) flour tortillas)

For the slaw:

• 2 peaches, diced

• 1 avocado, diced

• 2 cups shredded green cabbage

• ½ cup chopped cilantro

• ¼ cup diced onion (red or white) or scallions

• 1 teaspoon diced jalapeno (increase or decrease depending on your taste)

• ½ cup crumbled cotija cheese (cheddar or parmesan would work fine here)

• Juice of 1 lime

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• ½ teaspoon salt, plus more to taste

Directions

1. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the ground chicken and break it up as it cooks.

2. Once the chicken is mostly cooked through, add the Siete seasoning and follow the packet’s water instructions. Simmer until it thickens and the chicken’s fully cooked.

3. While that’s going, make the slaw. Toss everything together in a bowl, then salt to taste. Toss again.

4. Warm the tortillas, load them with chicken, top with slaw.

You could make the slaw ahead of time if necessary (I ate it as leftovers the next day, and it was still amazing).

Does anyone else put fruit in savory food, or is that just me?