Mexican chicken Dried Chile Marinade

Name: Mexican chicken Dried Chile Marinade
Cuisine: American, Mexican, Latin American
Ingredients: 4 dried Ancho chiles (earthy and sweet); 4 dried Guajillo chiles (bright and tangy); 1/4 cup orange juice; 1/4 cup lime juice; 1/4 cup oil (grapeseed, avocado, or olive oil); 5–6 cloves garlic, peeled; 1/2 white onion, roughly chopped; 1 tbsp dried Mexican oregano; 2 tsp ground cumin; 1 1/2 tsp sea salt; 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon; 1/2 tsp whole black peppercorns (or ground)

4 steps

A thick, flavor-packed dried chile marinade made with ancho and guajillo chiles, citrus juice, garlic, onion, and warm spices—ideal for marinating 2–3 lbs of chicken before cooking.

Updated at: Fri, 05 Jun 2026 20:27:28 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Great

Glycemic Index

Low

Nutrition per recipe

Calories840.6 kcal (42%)

Total Fat62.6 g (89%)

Carbs69.8 g (27%)

Sugars9.6 g (11%)

Protein13 g (26%)

Sodium2387.4 mg (119%)

Fiber23.2 g (83%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

0 servings

4dried Ancho chiles

earthy and sweet

4dried Guajillo chiles

bright and tangy

¼ cuporange juice

¼ cuplime juice

¼ cupoil

grapeseed, avocado, or olive oil

5 clovesgarlic

peeled

0.5white onion

roughly chopped

1 Tbspdried mexican oregano

2 tspground cumin

1 ½ tspsea salt

¼ tspground cinnamon

½ tspwhole black peppercorns

or ground

Instructions

Step 1

Toast the chiles: Heat a dry cast-iron skillet or heavy pan over medium heat. Press the destemmed and deseeded chiles flat into the pan for 10–15 seconds per side until fragrant. Be careful not to burn them, or they will taste bitter.

Step 2

Rehydrate: Transfer the toasted chiles to a bowl, cover them with boiling water, and let them soak for 15-20 minutes until completely soft and pliable.

Step 3

Blend: Drain the soaking liquid. In a blender, add the rehydrated chiles along with the orange juice, lime juice, oil, garlic, onion, and all the spices. Blend on high until the mixture becomes a perfectly smooth, thick paste.

Step 4

Marinate: Place your chicken in a large ziplock bag or shallow dish and pour the marinade over it. Massage it into the meat, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours for maximum flavor.