-
1
Place the chicken pieces in a pot and cover with cold water. Season with salt. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook until the chicken is just cooked through — the juices run clear when the thickest piece is pierced.
-
2
Remove the chicken and reserve the poaching liquid. Set both aside. If roasting the tomatillos, place them under a grill or directly on a dry comal until lightly charred and softened — the skins blister and the flesh turns dull green.
-
3
Toast the pepitoria in a dry pan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and barely golden — they must not darken enough to compromise the green colour of the finished sauce.
-
4
Combine the tomatillos, cebollín (entire stalks), cilantro stems and leaves, fresh green chiles, and toasted pepitoria in a blender. Add a ladleful of the reserved poaching liquid and blend to a smooth, pale-green sauce. This is where the dish lives or dies: the cebollín must dominate the aroma — if the sauce smells principally of seeds rather than green onion and herb, the balance is wrong and cannot be corrected later.
-
5
Pour the blended sauce into a wide pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until the raw tomatillo sharpness mellows and the sauce no longer smells of uncooked herb — the colour deepens slightly and the surface begins to bubble steadily.
-
6
Add the pre-cooked chicken pieces to the sauce. Ladle in enough reserved poaching liquid to achieve a stew consistency — the sauce should coat the chicken without being thick like a paste. Simmer together until the chicken is heated through and the sauce clings loosely to each piece.
-
7
Taste for salt and adjust. Serve immediately with warm corn tortillas and white rice — the herbal vibrancy fades on prolonged standing or chilling.