Peruvian Aji de Gallina is one of the most flavorful chicken dishes I’ve ever made. From the juicy, slow-braised chicken to the velvety sauce, every bite is a 10 out of 10. It is a labor of love but well worth the effort.
Every time I try Peruvian food, I’m blown away by the exciting flavors and unique ingredients. Clearly, my family feels the same because whenever I make my Pollo a la Brasa and Lomo Saltado, they can’t stop eating them!
Ají De Gallina
Aji de Gallina (pronounced ah-hee de gah-yee-nah) is a Peruvian chicken stew with a melting pot of influences from colonial Peru, Spain, Africa, and France. The name translates to “chicken with chili,” referencing its key ingredient, the ají amarillo pepper. It’s combined with braised chicken, bread, and chicken stock to become a rich, deeply comforting meal.
I made this recipe because I love sharing an epic stew with my family. Aji de gallina sure isn’t the fastest recipe on my blog, but its ridiculously good flavors make it so worth the effort in my book. Plus, I love seeing the smiles on my wife’s and daughter’s faces when they eat this.
They were obsessed with how rich and silky the shredded chicken and bread-thickened sauce turned out. To make it extra fun, I paired this Peruvian comfort food with traditional sides like garlic rice, boiled potatoes, and hard-boiled eggs. I hope you give it a try—if your family is anything like mine, they won’t be able to stop eating it.
Ingredients and Substitutions
This Peruvian chicken stew is made with two components: braised chicken and a comforting creamy sauce. This is what I used to make both:
- Oil – I love a good-quality olive oil, but a neutral-flavored high-heat oil works, too.
- Chicken – I went with split chicken breasts, although breaking up a whole chicken is a great budget-friendly hack.
- Aromatics – Yellow onion, carrot, celery, garlic, parsley, bay leaf, and oregano bring amazing flavors to the chicken stock (used in the sauce and to soak the bread).
For the sauce:
- Bread – I used the white bread already on my kitchen counter.
- Aromatics – The sauce gets its subtle heat and sweetness from caramelized red onions and garlic cloves.
- Peppers – Traditional ají amarillo chiles can be tough to find, so I used yellow bell peppers, a serrano pepper, and a Fresno chile instead. Store-bought ají amarillo paste works, too.
- Pecans – Raw unsalted pecans are best. Feel free to use walnuts as a substitute.
- Ají Panca – This mild, smoky chile paste gives the sauce its unmistakable Peruvian character. If you can’t find it at your local Latin market or online, use a mild chili paste or a dash of smoked paprika instead.
- Dairy – I used evaporated milk, Parmigiano Reggiano, and unsalted butter to make the sauce creamy.
- Seasonings – I warmed up the sauce with whole cumin seeds and a little nutmeg.
How to Make Ají De Gallina
Sear the chicken: First, I sear the split chicken breasts in a large pot over medium-high heat until they’re golden brown. Once done, I set all the pieces aside on a plate.
Sauté the vegetables: Next, I add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic to the pot and sauté them until the edges start to brown.
Simmer: I pour in the water and season it with salt and pepper. I add the seared chicken pieces back into the pot along with the parsley, bay leaf, and oregano. I let the stock simmer for 60 to 70 minutes.
Strain: I remove the chicken from the pot, then strain the stock through a chinois or fine-mesh strainer.
Soak the bread: Next, I soak the bread in some of the warm chicken stock until it’s soft.
Toast the cumin seeds: While I wait for the bread, I toast the cumin seeds in a large saucepan before grinding them with a mortar and pestle.
Cook the vegetables: I sauté the onions in the same pan over medium heat for 5 minutes, then reduce the heat and cook them for another 5 minutes. I add the peppers to the pan and let them caramelize.
Add aromatics: I stir in the garlic and pecans, then wait for them to release their aromas (my kitchen always smells amazing at this point).
Add spices and stock: Next, I mix in the ground cumin, aji panca, chicken stock, and salt. I leave the mixture alone to cook and deepen its flavors for a few minutes.
Add the bread: I stir in the soaked bread, then transfer the mixture to a blender. I blend it on high speed until it transforms into a thick cream sauce.
Finish: I pour the sauce back into the pan, then stir in the evaporated milk, cheese, butter, nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
Shred chicken and combine: I shred the meat from the braised chicken breasts by hand, then add it to the sauce. Sometimes I’ll finish it with a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten the flavors before serving.
Chef Tip + Notes
I need to stress the importance of packing your patience and taking the time to build those layers of flavor in this chicken stew. Every step, from searing the chicken to caramelizing the onions to toasting the spices and pecans, adds depth. If you rush or skip a step, the sauce will taste flat.
- Save extra stock: This recipe makes more chicken stock than you actually need, so be sure to freeze it for later. I have some great tips on how to do this in my Homemade Chicken Stock recipe.
- Consistency matters: Aji de gallina should have a velvety texture, and that only happens when everything is fully puréed. My high-speed blender is very reliable for this, giving me the smoothest results every time.
- Shortcut option: When I’m short on time, I’ll use pre-cooked shredded chicken and ready-made chicken stock instead of braising the chicken and making the broth from scratch.
- Adjust the heat: This dish is traditionally warm and savory rather than uncomfortably spicy. If you’re sensitive to heat, remove the seeds from fresh chiles or use less ají paste for a milder version.
Serving Suggestions
In Peru, aji de gallina is served with garlic rice, sliced boiled potatoes, quartered hard-boiled eggs, and black olives. I’ll try to include at least two or three of these sides to make the meal feel authentic. And on those extra hungry days, I’ll add these Peruvian beans and cancha (toasted corn) to the table as well.
Make-Ahead and Storage
Make-Ahead: This dish gets even better as it rests; you can make it at least one day ahead for the best flavor.
How to Store: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
How to Reheat: Reheat the chicken and sauce gently in a pot over low heat, adding a splash of chicken stock or milk to restore the creamy consistency.
More Stew Recipes
Aji De Gallina Recipe
Ingredients
For the Braised Chicken:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 split chicken breasts, about 1 ½ pounds total (see video)
- ½ roughly chopped yellow onion
- 1 roughly chopped carrot
- 1 roughly chopped rib of celery
- 2 smashed garlic cloves
- 4 to 6 sprigs of parsley
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons dry oregano
For the Sauce:
- 3 thick sliced of white bread, cut into 1” cubes
- 8 cups braised chicken stock, see above
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, or ground
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 peeled small diced small red onion
- 2 seeded large diced yellow bell pepper
- 1 seeded large diced serrano pepper
- 1 seeded large diced Fresno pepper
- ¼ cup pecans
- 3 thinly sliced garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons aji panca
- 4 cups evaporated milk
- ¼ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- garlic rice, optional
- Hard boiled eggs, shelled and quartered
- ½ cup pitted black olives
- 4 large peeled, boiled, and thickly sliced Yukon potatoes
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- For the Braised Chicken: In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. Once it begins to smoke lightly, add the split chicken breasts, skin-side down, and sear for 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until golden brown. If you fabricated your own chicken, I also add the backbone and wings for more flavor.
- Once browned, set them aside. In the same pot, add in the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic, and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until the edges start to brown.
- Pour in the water, season with salt and pepper. Place in the cooked split chicken and any other seared chicken parts you may have, along with the parsley, bay leaf, and oregano. Simmer over low to medium heat for 60 to 70 minutes.
- Once it’s done, remove the chicken and set it aside on a plate. Strain the stock through a chinois or fine-mesh strainer. You will have leftover stock after making this recipe, which you can use in other recipes or freeze.
- For the Sauce: Add the bread to a bowl and cover in 3 to 3 ½ cups of the chicken stock. It will soak up all of it. Set this to the side.
- In the meantime, toast the cumin seeds in a large sauce pot over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes. They will become very aromatic. Remove them and grind them using a mortar and pestle or a grinder.
- In the same pan over medium heat, add the olive oil, then add the onions. Gently season with salt, then sauté for 5 minutes, or until they start to turn lightly brown. Turn the heat down to low and cook for 8 to 10 minutes while stirring occasionally.
- With 5 minutes left in the onion cooking process, add in the peppers, gently season with salt, and cook for 5 minutes. You just want the edges of the peppers to start to turn light brown.
- Stir in the garlic and pecans and cook for 1 to 2 minutes to gently toast.
- Stir in the cumin, the aji panca, and 3 cups of the chicken stock. Gently season with salt and cook down over low to medium heat to further concentrate the flavors, for about 8 to 10 minutes.
- Add in the soaked bread and mix to combine.
- Transfer the mixture to a blender without the center cap. Blend on high speed until it is completely smooth. If it is too thick, add some more chicken stock. It should be like a thick cream sauce.
- Add the sauce back to the pan and finish with the evaporated milk, parmigiano, butter, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Keep warm over low heat.
- While the sauce stays warm, remove all the meat from the braised chicken breasts, discarding the skin and bones, and shred it by hand.
- Add the chicken to the sauce and mix to coat. You can squeeze in 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of lemon juice to brighten it up, if you'd like.
- Serve with garlic rice, sliced boiled potatoes, quartered hard-boiled eggs, and olives.
Aji de Gallina Recipe