Heal Me Smoky Chicken & Black Bean Stew

We’ve teamed up with Sainsbury’s to bring you low-cost, feel-good recipes. Easy, tasty and stress-free. Get your ingredients delivered by Sainsbury’s in just a few taps. This dish is perfect for a January reset. Tender chicken thighs, tossed in smoky fajita spices and crisped up in the air fryer, bring big flavour to this vibrant, Tex-Mex-inspired stew. Simmered with black beans, red onion and a squeeze of lime, it’s hearty, tangy and properly satisfying. Finish with a fresh jalapeño-avocado salsa and a handful of tortilla chips for a bowl that’s bold, bright and guaranteed to wake up your weeknight dinner routine. We love to make a big batch as the stew is ideal for meal prep; it's also naturally gluten-free (double check your tortilla brand) and dairy-free. Always remember to season your food as you cook - for the best flavour!

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Ingredients

chicken thighs 4
fajita seasoning 2 tbsp
red onion 1 (chopped)
black beans 400 g (drained)
chopped tomatoes 400 g
lime 2
cherry tomatoes 200 g (chopped)
avocado 3 (chopped)
jalapeños 1 tbsp (chopped)
tortilla chips 80 g

Method

Cook the smoky chicken

Preheat the air fryer to 190°C. Chop any larger chicken thighs in half, then add them to the air fryer basket. Sprinkle over ½ of the fajita seasoning and drizzle with your preferred oil or cooking oil spray. Season with salt & pepper, toss the chicken to ensure it’s coated, then air fry for 14 minutes.
Transfer from the air fryer and when cool enough to handle, shred with 2 forks.
Alternatively you can cook the chicken in a conventional oven at 200°C/fan 180°C, for 20 minutes.

Make the black bean stew

Chop the red onion (reserve 2 tablespoons chopped red onion for your salsa). Make up the chicken stock cube with 75ml boiling water per serving (300ml stock for serves 4, 150ml stock for serves 2).
In a pan, heat a dash of your preferred cooking oil or spray, add the red onion, drained black beans and the rest of the fajita seasoning and cook for 4 minutes, adding a splash of water if needed.
Stir in the tinned chopped tomatoes and chicken stock then simmer gently for 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Make the avocado jalapeño salsa

While the stew is simmering, juice half the lime and cut the rest into wedges, to garnish the finished dish.
Chop the cherry tomatoes, avocado and jalapeños. In a bowl, mix them together with the lime juice, reserved red onion and a dash of olive oil, then season to taste.

Finish the stew & plate up

Stir the shredded smoky chicken into the stew and heat through.
Plate up in bowls, served alongside the salsa, lime wedges and some tortilla chips if you like. Tuck in and enjoy!

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