When I ran across the recipe for Slow Cooker Chipotle Chicken Tamale Chili, I stopped in my tracks. As someone who eats gluten free, tamales are WONDERFUL. In fact a lot of Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes are gluten free. These restaurants are some of the few places I’m not stuck with a salad. Not that I hate salad, but who wants to go out to eat, just to eat a salad? I surely don’t. When I eat out at a Mexican restaurant, I love tamales. They are a treat. I’ve made them myself before and they are a chore. They are not something I feel like making most of the time. However, when I saw this recipe for a tamale and chili mashup, I couldn’t resist. When I added the recipe to my calculator, I have to give Half-Baked Harvest some credit. She did a good job with the calories, protein and the flavor. Just need to lower the sodium and bump up the A and C and give it my spin.
Here are the original stats:
- 260 Calories
- 5g Fat
- 55mg Cholesterol
- 929mg Sodium
- 398mg Potassium
- 32g Carbohydrate
- 25g Protein
- 33% Vitamin A
- 51% Vitamin C
- 5% Calcium
- 15% Iron
Not bad. I’m going to make a few changes and put my spin on this recipe. Tony and I could use a break from the chicken, so I’m going to make this with pork. Here are the changes I am making:
- I am deleting the canned enchilada sauce and adding in a pumpkin enchilada sauce from She Likes Food. This lowers the sodium and avoids tomato products.
- Removed any added salt.
- Replaced the chicken with pork tenderloin.
- Added one red bell pepper to increase the vitamin C.
- Added butternut squash to increase the vitamin A. I had some left over, so why not!
Here are the final stats:
- 270 Calories
- 3g Fat
- 60mg Cholesterol
- 233mg Sodium
- 339mg Potassium
- 37g Carbohydrate
- 26g Protein
- 147% Vitamin A
- 127% Vitamin C
- 5% Calcium
- 17% Iron
So here is my take!
Slow Cooker Pumpkin Chipotle Pork Tamale Chili
Serv
- 1 onion, diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 1/2 pounds pork tenderloin
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 recipe Pumpkin Enchilada Sauce (from She Likes Food)
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1-2 chipotle chiles in adobo, finely chopped
- 3/4 cup cornmeal
- 1 mango, sliced or diced (can also used canned diced mangoes)
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1/2 pound butternut squash in 1 inch cubes
- juice and zest of 1 lime
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- In the bottom your crockpot, layer the onion and garlic. Add the pork, ancho chili powder, cumin, and oregano. Add in the butternut squash and bell peppers. Pour over the enchilada sauce and 4 cups broth. Add the apple cider vinegar, chipotle chilies, and cornmeal. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 4-6 hours. Shred the pork using two forks.
- In a small bowl, combine the mango, lime juice, and lime zest, and cilantro. Add to the chili and mix. Serve.
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