Pollo Fundido. This is the best Mexican food anywhere and you can find it at Pancho's in Central, South Carolina. What is Pollo Fundido? I know Pollo means chicken in Spanish, but I have no idea about the Fundido. This is my attempt to recreate this dish since there are no, and I repeat no, good Mexican restaurants here in Mass.

Pollo Fundido

I use Emeril Lagasse's filling recipe for empanadas

2 T. oil
3 T. white onion (I pulverize my onions in the food processor)
1 1/2 t. minced garlic
1 T + 1/2 t. chili powder
1/4 t. oregano
1/2 t. cumin
1 1/2 lbs. chicken, shredded
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1 (4.5 oz) can green chiles, drained and chopped
8 (10") flour tortillas
1 c. grated pepper jack cheese
Cooking spray


Heat oil over medium-hi heat. Saute onions about 2 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, oregano and cumin. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add shredded chicken and season with salt and pepper. Stir in chiles. Cook about 5 minutes. Set aside and cool slightly. Spread 1/2 c. of mixture on each tortilla and wrap. Place seam side down on baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Spray each tortilla with cooking spray. Sprinkle with 1-2 T. of cheese and bake at 350 until golden brown and crisp, about 5-10 minutes. Broiling also works well too if your chicken is already hot.

Top with queso and salsa and serve. I get queso from Moe's and salsa from Chili's...yes, it may be a lot of places to go but if you don't have time to make your own or just don't want to, it's great.

**Note: This is much better fried, but it still tastes pretty good baked as well. The picture above is baked.