Sprinter Survival: Chicken Thigh Birria

April 10, 2025

(for When the Weather Can’t Make Up Its Mind)

Let’s be real: Sprinter—that special Pennsylvania season between the last snowstorm and the first flip-flop sighting—is confusing. One minute you're scraping frost off your windshield, the next you’re sweating in a hoodie because you insisted it was still coat weather in April.

This recipe is for those days. Days when your seasonal affective disorder has seasonal affective disorder.

Enter: Chicken Thigh Birria, slow-cooked to perfection with bone-in, skin-on goodness and a cozy broth so delicious it could thaw out even the crankiest, mud-covered soul in your household.

It’s smoky. It’s savory. It’s got just enough kick to wake you up from your seasonal slump. And it stars the under-appreciated hero of the poultry world: the chicken thigh. Let’s make it…

Recipe: Chicken Thigh Birria

Ingredients:

8-10 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin-on (because flavor > calories)
1 medium onion, quartered like your patience this time of year
4-5 dried guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
2-3 dried ancho chiles, also de-seeded
2 dried pasilla chiles (optional, for that “I know what I’m doing” flavor)
1-3 dried arbol chilies (optional, if you want to “bring the heat”)
6 cloves garlic, smashed, because you need to release something
1 can (14.5 oz) fire-roasted tomatoes
1 cinnamon stick (or a generous pinch of sass)
½ tsp allspice, because cloves are controversial and we don’t need more drama
1 tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp dried thyme
3 bay leaf, whole, for aesthetic and herbal reasons
1 tsp Mexican oregano
3 tsp Knorr Caldo de Tomate, aka "the secret weapon"
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar, for tang and balance
2 cups chicken stock (or beef broth if you want to get fancy)
1 tbsp oil (olive, avocado, whatever your weathered heart desires)
Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

Optional Garnishes:

Chopped cilantro
Diced onions
Lime wedges
A side of seasonal confusion

Directions:

1. First, prep your poultry.

Pat those thighs dry and season with salt and pepper like you mean it. You can let them marinate for a bit if you’re patient… or if you need to go dig your snow brush out of the trunk one more time.

2. Toast the chiles.

Pop your dried chiles into a dry pan over medium heat. Give them a light toast until they puff up and smell incredible—but don’t burn them or they’ll turn bitter, much like your attitude after getting hit with surprise sleet.

Soak them in hot water for 15–20 minutes until nice and soft. Blend with a little of the soaking liquid if it isn't bitter (use a little stock if it is), then strain it so your sauce is smooth like your best one-liner.

3. Build the flavor bomb.

Sauté your quartered onion and garlic in a little oil until they start to brown (but not burn—calm down, it’s not a grill). Add the can of fire-roasted tomatoes and cook it down a few minutes.

Toss the onion-tomato mix into a blender along with your strained chile puree, allspice, cumin seeds, thyme, bay leaf, Mexican oregano, apple cider vinegar, and Caldo de Tomate. Add a splash of stock to help it along. Blend until it’s velvety and smells like a cozy hug from your abuela.

4. Brown your chicken like it’s summer grilling season.

Sear those thighs, skin-side down first, until golden and crisp. Not essential, but highly recommended for flavor and therapy. Transfer to a slow cooker.

5. Combine and let the magic happen.

Pour the blended sauce over the chicken in the slow cooker. Add the rest of the stock, and stir gently. Cook on LOW for 4–5 hours, or HIGH for 2–3, until the chicken is falling off the bone like your will to shovel another driveway.

6. Shred, sip, and serve.

Take the thighs out, remove bones and skin (or crisp the skin and snack on it—no judgment), and shred the meat. Return to the slow cooker and let it soak up all the spicy love.

Serve in warm tortillas, garnished with cilantro, onion, lime, and the knowledge that you’ve survived another day of Sprinter.

Bonus Tips:

This broth is slurp-worthy. Serve it alongside the tacos and go full birria dunk mode. You'll feel alive again.
This also makes a killer soup base if you’re over tacos (…who are you?)

Bonus Tip Deux: Leftovers? You’re in Luck.

This shredded chicken birria gets even better the next day, and if you’ve got leftovers, you have to try the viral darling of the birria world — quesabirria.

Here’s how we do it:

Dip a corn or flour tortilla in warm birria broth, place in a heated skillet and sprinkle it with a generous layer of shredded cheese (Oaxaca, Monterey Jack, or even mozzarella — go wild).
Once the cheese is starting to melt, spoon some of that juicy shredded chicken birria on top.
Fold the tortilla in half and crisp it up on both sides until golden, cheesy, and a little bit ridiculous in the best way.
Dunk it straight into that warm birria broth (aka liquid gold) and prepare to see the universe differently.

Perfect for lunches, late-night cravings, or showing off for guests who “just stopped by.” You’re welcome.

There you have it. Chicken thigh birria, built for those awkward, muddy, half-frozen days of Sprinter. When it’s not quite time to break out the grill, but you still want something that tastes like yes.

Let me know how it turns out—or how many times it snowed while you were making it.

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