May 25: Super Mashers with Chicken and Green Chili Hash

4 large starchy potatoes, such as Idaho

   Coarse salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 pound chicken breast cutlets, cut into thin strips

   Coarse black pepper

1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and thinly sliced

2 Anaheim or poblano chilies, seeded and thinly sliced

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced

2 to 3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped

   Juice of 1 lime

1 cup prepared green chili salsa, mild or medium heat level

¼ cup sour cream

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

¼ to ½ cup milk or reduced-fat milk, depending on how soft you like your mashers

1 sack shredded sharp Cheddar cheese

Peel the potatoes and cut them into small chunks. Place the potatoes in a pot and cover with cold water.

Cover the pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Uncover, add salt to season, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Season the sliced chicken with the salt and pepper, then heat 1 tablespoon of the vegetable oil. Add the meat and start searing it up.

Brown the strips on all sides, then push it off to one side of the pan and add the remaining tablespoon of vegetable oil to the pan. Add the peppers, chilies, and onions, season with salt and pepper, then toss them around, searing the edges, for another minute or two before combining all the meat and veggies together.

Add the thyme and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, keeping everything moving around like a stir-fry.

Turn off the heat and drizzle the lime juice over the chicken and veggies, then stir in the salsa.

Drain the potatoes, then return them to the hot pot to evaporate some of the water content. Add the sour cream and butter and start smashing away with a masher.

Add ¼ to ½ cup milk to get the potatoes to the desired consistency. Season the super mashers with salt and pepper.

Pile up one fourth of the potatoes on each plate. Top with a generous handful of Cheddar cheese. Pile up the hot chicken, peppers, and chili salsa on top of the super mashers and serve. The heat of the meat and veggies will melt the cheese. YUMMO!

4 SERVINGS

This meal was much better than the steak meal from 2 nights ago, of which it is one of 2 variations. I left the garlic/scallion mixture out of the potatoes and the chicken cooked up much less watery and much more tender than the steak. I used mild salsa (although I couldn't find green salsa; I used red), and poblanos instead of anaheims, so it was not as spicy and my girls actually ate it. Overall, a winner!