This is one of those recipes where everything feels a little intense at the beginning — and then the oven does its thing and sorts it all out. The sauce is inspired by salsa macha, the chile oil from Veracruz that’s built on dried chiles, nuts, and fat. Here, instead of frying anything, everything gets blended and braised together with the chicken until it turns rich, mellow, and deeply savory.
At first taste, the sauce is loud. Smoky, spicy, nutty, sharp. Don’t panic. Nearly two hours in a low oven softens the heat and pulls everything into balance. The peanuts thicken the sauce, the chiles relax, and the chicken absorbs all of it. What you end up with is spoonable, shreddable, and perfect for piling onto rice or tucking into tortillas.
This is not a quick dinner, but it’s an easy one. Most of the time is hands-off, and the payoff is a pot of chicken that feels bold and intentional without needing much from you once it’s in the oven.
Salsa Macha Chicken Thighs
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup peanuts
- 3 dried ancho chiles rehydrated and stems removed
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 8-ounce can chipotles in adobo
- 1- inch piece fresh ginger peeled and chopped
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ cup neutral oil
- 8 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs (1½–2 pounds)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Add the peanuts to a dry skillet set over medium heat and toast, stirring occasionally, until lightly charred and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
- Add the toasted peanuts, rehydrated ancho chiles, lime juice, chipotles in adobo, ginger, sugar, and salt to a food processor.
- Pulse until a coarse paste forms, scraping down the sides as needed. With the processor running, slowly stream in the oil until the sauce loosens to a pourable, peanut-butter–like consistency.
- Arrange the chicken thighs in a Dutch oven or large oven-safe skillet. Pour the salsa macha over the chicken and turn to coat thoroughly.
- Cover with a lid or tightly with foil and roast for 1 hour and 45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let the chicken rest for 15 minutes. Shred the meat, discard the bones, and mix it back into the sauce.
- Serve over rice with fresh slaw for a bowl, or use as a taco filling.
Notes
- Salsa macha traditionally uses fried chiles and nuts; here, blending and braising achieves a similar depth with less active work.
- The sauce will taste sharp and aggressive before cooking — this mellows significantly during the long roast.
- Leftovers keep well and reheat easily.
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