Shredded Chicken

Shredded chicken is so good for so many things. You can use it in a sloppy-joe style sandwich, or on a pizza, but the best way to use it is in pretty much any Mexican or Tex/Mex food that needs meat. Tacos, burritos and enchiladas are all better with some tasty shredded chicken.

3 poached chicken breasts, preferably still warm
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup white wine
1/2 cup quartered cherry tomatoes
2 sun dried tomatoes, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 chili pepper, seeded and diced (you can leave the seeds in if you'd like it extra spicy)
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon cumin
2 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
salt
pepper
water

Put the chicken breasts in a high-sided skillet over medium-high heat and add the broth and the wine, and enough water to cover the chicken. Bring it to a low boil and turn down the heat. Add the tomatoes, garlic, onion, chili powder and cumin and keep it at a very low boil.

The secret to getting tender and juicy chicken is keeping it at that very low boil for as long as it takes for the chicken to naturally break apart, while keeping it moist enough that it doesn't dry out. So, take a pair of tongs and periodically turn your chicken around in the pan until it starts to fall apart. Add more water if it looks dry and bring it back to a low boil.

When the chicken starts to break up add the basil and allow it to simmer while you use a fork to gently pull the chicken into strips. Taste it and add salt and pepper accordingly. If you feel it needs more time to soak up spices you can always add more water, but keep in mind that your finished product should only have about 1/4 cup of liquid, just enough to keep it moist but not wet. If you're making it with the intention of reheating later you might want to leave a bit more liquid so that you don't wind up with dry chicken for your next meal.

Recipe by: Kelly Sink