Peruvian cuisine is delicious. A mix of flavors with Native Peruvian, European, African and Asian influences appeals to many palates. Arroz con pollo is a common dish in many Latin American countries, each with its own seasonings and cooking method, but all equally delicious. The Dominican version, called “locrio de pollo”, is said to be an adaptation of Spanish paella. It uses tomato sauce instead of the scarce and pricier zafron. In contrast, Peruvian arroz con pollo is green, calling for big amounts of cilantro. A friend recently introduced me to this dish and I loved it. See easy print recipe at the end!
Tip: ajì amarillo paste is made with Peruvian ajì amarillo. In the USA, this can be found in the frozen section of many Latin supermarkets. Alternatively, you can buy the paste already made in specialty food stores or online.
Arroz con pollo - Peruvian style
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs with skin
- 2 cups uncooked white rice
- 4 cups chicken broth or water
- 1 small bottle or 1 can of beer
- 1 big bunch of cilantro processed in a blender/food processor with 1 cup of water until it forms a paste
- 1/2 white or yellow onion chopped in small cubes
- 2 big cloves of garlic peeled and crushed
- 2 red bell peppers cut in thin slices
- 1 cup sweet corn
- 1 cup peas
- 1 cup carrots cut in small cubes approx. three small or two medium carrots
- 1 table-spoon Peruvian 'ajì amarillo' yellow pepper paste
- 1 table-spoon of cumin
- 1 tea-spoon of pepper
- 2 tea-spoons of salt
- 2 table-spoons vegetable oil
Instructions
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In a large mixing bowl, season chicken with cumin, salt and pepper. Stir.
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Add oil to a medium-large sauce pan and allow it to heat.
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Add chicken skin side down and cook on high until it browns on both sides. Skin should be crispy. Once seared, set the chicken aside.
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Stir-fry onion and bell peppers for two minutes until onion becomes transparent.
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Add rice, water or broth, beer, cilantro, garlic and vegetables, stirring once.
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Add chicken thighs at the very top.
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Cover and allow to cook on low for 15 minutes (or until water boils down). Then, turn fire off and let rice sit covered for an additional 20 minutes.
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Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Peruvian style arroz con pollo is traditionally served by itself, but here I’ve served it with mixed salad and ajì amarillo paste.
Looks Yum!…I just made arroz con pollo last night and it was something I made out of a whim. Let’s just call it “my style” I did not have the traditional ingredients and its not really a planned one but I did have the rice & chicken. what’s good about it was the pleasant taste and aroma of Saffron.
Which version of arroz con pollo did you make HappyMappy?
I have made this a few times and it is wonderful. I found the Aji paste in a international market and since have used it for numerous recipes. I slather the chicken in this recipe with the aji paste, gives it a bit of a kick.
That sounds delicious Jeni! I do love aji paste on the chicken too. Thanks for the feedback!
On the ingredients list chicken broth is listed but not in the recipe directions. Water is listed in the recipe directions but not on ingredients list. I would imagine where you have to add water this is where the chicken broth should be added. Is any water needed? Also as far as the aji sauce goes do you spread on top of chicken once the recipe is prepared or how do you serve the aji sauce with meal? This recipe sounds delicious but I am not familiar with peruvian cooking.
Hi Linda, sorry about that. Water can be used instead of chicken broth, as the rice will absorb the chicken flavor from the chicken. The broth does give it a boost and is nice if it’s around. I will update that on the recipe. The aji sauce can be spread on the chicken, or just added to the rice with a spoon. Thanks again, and let me know how it comes out.