Grilled Chicken Tacos with Kiwi Fruit Salsa

(Discolsure: I received free samples of Zespri SunGold Kiwifruit mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Zespri Kiwifruit and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.)

I love tacos. There is just something so appealing about eating a meal that comes all wrapped up in a little shell (that’s how my sisters and I have always referred to tortillas). Plus there are endless possibilities for toppings and flavors. Have you ever been to a dinner party where they had a “build your own taco” station…it’s like Christmas! Who doesn’t love tacos?

I’ve been wanting to make a light, fruit inspired taco recipe for awhile now in celebration of summer. Needless to say, I was so excited when I learned that Zespri SunGold Kiwifruit was sponsoring a contest and challenging The Recipe Redux members to create a flavorful dish using Kiwifruit. I immediately knew that I wanted to incorporate the fruit into a taco dish somehow.

Zespri is the world leader in great quality, non-GMO Kiwifruit. SunGold Kiwifruit is actually yellow on the inside and the skin isn’t fuzzy, like the green kiwi that many are used to seeing. It’s a bit sweeter and more tropical tasting than the green kiwi, and even tastes great just cutting it open and eating it with a spoon.

The Grilled Chicken Tacos with Kiwi Fruit Salsa are so full of flavor! I used SunGold Kiwi in the marinade for the chicken (recipe below) because it contains an enzyme that actually acts as a meat tenderizer. Which makes it perfect in a marinade because it creates such juicy, tender chicken for your tacos.

Not only does it taste great, but it packs a nutritional punch as well. A serving of SunGold Kiwifruit provides:

• 3 times for Vitamin C than an orange
• As much Potassium as a banana
• A good source of Vitamin E (a powerful antioxidant)
• Low Glycemic Index (score 0f 39) fruit, making it great for diabetics

Now back to those tacos…I could barely keep my husband from finishing them off before I was able to snap a few photos. I used Chicken Breast Tenders because I think they grill up nicely and are the perfect size for tacos. This recipe would also work great with chicken thighs, steak or fish. Very versatile.

I marinated the chicken for about 20 minutes, which was the perfect amount of time to create juicy grilled chicken. Since kiwifruit acts as a tenderizer, you don’t want to marinade the protein for too long so it doesn’t break down too much and become mushy.

After grilling the chicken, I layered a flame-broiled tortilla with a little chopped arugula, a piece of grilled chicken, topped with Kiwifruit Salsa and drizzled with greek yogurt. The habanero chili peppers in the salsa add quite a bit of heat, but it’s balanced really nicely with the greek yogurt and tropical flavor of the kiwi.

I’ll be perfectly honest that I had a little Kiwifruit Salsa leftover after scarfing down these tacos and I just ate the leftover salsa straight from the bowl. It’s that good! The kiwifruit is sweet and tropical tasting and combines nicely with the red onion, cilantro, and pineapple. I could eat it as a side dish all on its own.

Have you ever had SunGold Kiwifruit? It’s so versatile and can be used in a variety of recipes. Check out some of the Kiwifruit recipes below and let me know what you think.

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Grilled Chicken Tacos with Kiwi Fruit Salsa

These grilled chicken tacos make the perfect dish and the Sungold Kiwifruit adds a tropical flair!

Course entree

Cuisine American

Keyword chicken taco, fruit salsa, tacos

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 6 tacos

Author Brynn at The Domestic Dietitian

Ingredients

• 1 pound chicken breast tenders
• 4 Sungold Kiwifruits
• 1/4 cup pineapple diced
• 1 lime juiced
• 2 cloves garlic crushed
• 1/4 red onion diced
• 1/2 bunch cilantro chopped
• 1/4 cup arugula rough chop
• 2 habanero peppers diced
• 6 corn tortillas
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp greek yogurt

Instructions

• Scoop out inside of 1 kiwifruit and add to food processor.
• Add lime juice, garlic cloves, 1/4 cup cilantro, 1/2 habanero pepper, 1 tsp salt, pepper, cumin and olive oil to food processor and combine
• Pour marinade over chicken and let sit for 20 minutes
• Meanwhile, combine remaining 2 kiwifruit (chopped), red onion, remaining cilantro, remaining habanero peppers and pineapple to small bowl. Season with salt as needed. Set aside
• Grill chicken for about 5 minutes each side, until cooked thru
• Broil tortillas over an open flame for about 1 minute
• Layer tortilla with arugula, grilled chicken, top with kiwifruit salsa, and drizzle greek yogurt over each taco.
• Enjoy!

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