Aji De Gallina Recipe
Aji de Gallina is a classic Peruvian dish with tender, slow-cooked chicken and a silky, flavorful sauce that’s worth the effort.
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
- 1 gallon water
- 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
- 12 ounces 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 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.
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.
Make-Ahead: This dish gets even better as it rests, so I recommend making 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.
Nutrition
Calories: 526kcalCarbohydrates: 43gProtein: 28gFat: 28gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 79mgSodium: 800mgPotassium: 1033mgFiber: 6gSugar: 23gVitamin A: 2433IUVitamin C: 77mgCalcium: 243mgIron: 2mg