This mixiotes de pollo recipe is beyond delicious! The delicate meat is marinated with a flavorful chili sauce, wrapped in a small pouch, and steamed to perfection. Enjoy this Mexican traditional dish in tacos made with homemade tortillas, rice, pickled onions, and salsa.

About

Mixiotes is a Mexican traditional dish that consists of meat marinated in adobo sauce, wrapped in pouches made with maguey translucent skin, and cooked in a steamer.

The Mixiote recipe is hundreds of years old, it was prepared by the natives of the southern Mexican Plateau, which includes the states of Querétaro, Hidalgo, Mexico, Morelos, Tlaxcala, and Mexico City, where sheep farming and maguey cultivation are popular until this day.

From the Nahuatl words metl, which means maguey, and xiotl, film or membrane, the mixiote is the semi-transparent leaf that emerges from the cuticle of a maguey plant and was used for steam cooking by the Mayans, Aztecs, and Otomi people.

Mixiotes de pollo in a tray.

Due to the popularity of the use of maguey leaves in Mexican cuisine, its sale has been prohibited in many places, since the process by which the skin is harvested, damages the leaves of the maguey and often kills the plant.

Because of that, the mixiotes are now replaced with banana leaves, aluminum foil, parchment paper, and plastic bags. And even though the flavor will never be the same, it is still a traditional and healthy dish that can be enjoyed at home using other traditional ingredients.

Ingredients

  • Chicken. I am using chicken thighs with the skin on for more flavor. Feel free to add skinless chicken or substitute it with chicken breast if you want. You can also replace chicken with any other type of meat you prefer, such as pork, beef, lamb, or even fish.
  • Nopales. This is an optional ingredient, I used a jar of cooked nopalitos which are available online in Mexican grocery stores. Feel free to use fresh nopales boiled or just leave out this ingredient.
  • Mexican chilies: You will need ancho, guajillo chiles, and morita chilies. They can be found at many Mexican and Latin American grocery stores or on Amazon.
  • Avocado leaves: You can find dried avocado leaves sold in small packages at Mexican grocery stores. Is not an ingredient easy to find in many countries, so you can also leave it out.
  • Spices: Mexican orégano (if you can find it or just use the one available to you), cumin seeds (or ground), whole cloves, black peppercorns, thyme, bay leaves, garlic cloves.
  • Vinegar: Use any type of vinegar available to you.
  • For wrapping: Parchment paper and aluminum foil, or you can substitute parchment paper with banana leaves.

How To Make Mixiotes de Pollo

  • Remove the stems in the chilies. Cut the ancho and pasilla chilies lengthwise and remove seeds and membranes.
  • Heat a griddle or comal over medium heat and toast all chilies for a few seconds to bring out the flavor. Pay attention to this step because chiles burn easily.
  • Place chilies in a bowl and cover with hot water. Allow soaking for about 15 minutes or until the water reach room temperature.
  • Drain the chilies and place them in a blender along with garlic, thyme, peppercorns, whole cloves, cumin, oregano, and 2 teaspoons of salt.
  • Add 2 cups of cold water and vinegar, then blend until smooth. Allow the sauce to cool down completely.

Place chicken in a bowl and add the adobo sauce. Mix well to nicely coat the chicken on all sides.

Cover the bowl with cling film and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.

Chicken thighs marinating in adobo sauce.

Fill a dish with hot water and immerse the parchment paper sheets for 5 minutes. Remove and lightly pat dry them with kitchen towels.

Take a medium bowl and line it first with a sheet of foil, then place a parchment paper sheet over it. Add a tablespoon of the chicken marinade.

Starting the preparation of a mixiote, adding the adobo sauce first.

Arrange one chicken thigh in the middle and place a bay leaf and an avocado leaf on top.

Add some nopales then top with some of the remaining adobo marinade.

Finishing the preparation of chicken mixiote.

Lift the four corners of the parchment paper sheet to form a pouch, then tie it with kitchen twine.

Wrap the pouch with the foil sheet and twist it to secure it. Repeat the steps to make 5 more packages.

Place a steamer rack inside a large stockpot. Add water just a little bit below the rack level. Lay all the packages inside the pot and then cover them with a large sheet of parchment paper and one of aluminum foil.

Mixiotes ready to cook in a steamer.

Bring the water in the steamer to a boil, cover the pot and cook the mixiotes de pollo for about 1 hour and 30 minutes, checking occasionally and adding more water to the steamer when needed.

Notes

  • The aluminum foil prevents leaking from the packages, if you don’t use it, the amazing cooking broth will end into the steamer water and you will miss lots of flavor!
  • Be gentle when you remove the small packages from the steamer, as they are a bit delicate after cooked and can fall apart.
  • A mixiote is a healthy dish, in fact, there’s no oil or grease involved in its cooking. If you want to cut down on calories I suggest using lean cuts like chicken breast, pork loin, or fish like cod, tilapia, or halibut.
A close-up of chicken mixiote.

How To Serve

You can eat mixiote by placing it in a bowl, then removing the twine, and taking the meat with a fork. You can either eat it as it is with a side of arroz rojo, or make some tacos.

Mixiote tacos can be assembled with corn or flour tortillas, rice, onion, cilantro, and any salsa you prefer. Finish with a good squeeze of lime and enjoy!

Here are other toppings and sides you might want to try to bring your tacos to the next level:

Mixiote tacos served in a clay plate with some sides around.

Store and Reheat

Mixiotes de pollo can be stored for up to 3 days in the refrigerator inside an airtight container.

For reheating leftovers, the best way to do it is in the steamer. Just fill the steamer with water and reheat until the meat is nicely warmed through. Or you can also reheat only the meat and juices in a pan on your stovetop.

If you want to freeze this dish, I suggest unwrapping the meat and transfer to a freezer-proof container. It will last up to 3 months.

Mixiotes de Pollo Recipe.

Mixiotes de Pollo

6 mixiotes
Mixiotes de pollo is a traditional Mexican dish made of chicken marinated in adobo sauce, wrapped in parchment paper, and steamed to perfection. Enjoy this flavorful dish in tacos or served with a side of rice.
prep 30 minutes
cook 1 hour 40 minutes
Marinating time 4 hours
total 6 hours 10 minutes

Equipment

  • 6 parchment paper sheets + more for lining the steamer
  • 6 aluminum foil sheets + more for lining the steamer
  • kitchen twine

Ingredients 

  • 6 large chicken thighs (skin on)
  • 1 ½ cups cooked nopales (optional, see notes)
  • 1 ancho chili pepper
  • 6 guajillo chilies
  • 2 morita chilies
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • 2 whole cloves
  • ½ tsp black peppercorns
  • ½ tsp thyme
  • 6 bay leaves
  • 6 dried avocado leaves (optional)
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 Tbsp white vinegar
  • salt (to taste)

Instructions
 

  • Remove the stems in the chilies. Cut the ancho and pasilla chilies lengthwise and remove seeds and membranes.
  • Heat a griddle or comal over medium heat and toast all chilies for a few seconds to bring out the flavor.
  • Place chilies in a bowl and cover with hot water. Allow soaking until the water reach room temperature.
  • Drain the chilies and place them in a blender along with garlic, thyme, peppercorns, whole cloves, cumin, oregano, and 2 teaspoons of salt.
  • Add 2 cups of water and vinegar, then blend until smooth. Adjust salt to taste.
  • Place chicken in a bowl and add the adobo sauce. Mix well to coat the chicken on all sides.
  • Cover the bowl with cling film and place in the fridge to marinate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight.
  • Take a medium bowl, line it with foil, and then place a parchment paper sheet over it.
  • Add first some adobo sauce, then arrange one chicken thigh in the middle and place a bay leaf on top. You can also place an avocado leaf if you have it.
  • Add some nopales on top of the chicken, and some of the remaining adobo marinade.
  • Lift the four corners of parchment paper to form a pouch and tie with kitchen twine.
  • Wrap the pouch with the foil sheet and repeat the steps until all ingredients are used.
  • Place a steamer rack inside a large stockpot. Add water just a little bit below the rack level, then fold the steam rack with more parchment paper.
  • Lay all mixiotes inside the pot and then cover them with a large sheet of parchment paper and one of aluminum foil.
  • Bring the water in the steamer to a boil, cover the pot and cook the mixiotes for about 1 hour and 40 minutes, checking occasionally and adding more water when needed.
  • Once cooked, carefully transfer the mixiote to a bowl and unwrap it. Eat with tortillas and your preferred sides (read notes below).

Notes

  • The aluminum foil prevents leaking from the packages.
  • Be careful when you remove the small packages from the steamer or they will fall apart.
  • You can use lean cuts and other types of meat to make this recipe, such as chicken breast, pork loin, or fish like cod, tilapia, or halibut.
  • Serve this dish with rice on the side or make tacos with warm tortillas, cilantro, onion, lime, and your favorite salsa.
  • Mixiotes last up to 3 days in the fridge or up to 3 months in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
Calories: 296kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 111mg | Sodium: 874mg | Potassium: 427mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 2584IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 57mg | Iron: 2mg
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Recipe Rating




3 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Chicken mixiotes are a true taste sensation! The tender chicken, marinated in a rich blend of spices and chilies, steamed to perfection in banana leaves (I used those for wrapping), creates an amazing combination of flavors. Served with steamed rice and it was perfect!

  2. 5 stars
    Made them yesterday and the meat was incredible flavorful and tender! Served with your pickled onions recipe btw :) and store-bought tortillas, but next time I’ll make some tortillas too. Thank you!

  3. 5 stars
    Thank you so much for this recipe! We will be having Taco Nights this Friday and I’ve been looking for something to pair with my chili oil. I just found out that it’s a good pair, so I can’t wait to make Chicken Mixiotes!