Aji de Gallina

This is my all time favorite Peruvian dish!  Not only is it tasty, but the recipe makes a lot and it is great for leftovers for lunches.   I describe the dish to people who've never had it as similar to a chicken curry dish, but there is no curry at all in it.  The base of the dish is actually liquefied bread!  To make the dish properly takes about two days as one of the main ingredients is chicken stock, which can take up to five hours to make properly.   If you have a good chicken stock recipe and a lot of time on your hands, by all means use it, I normally use the low sodium variety canned stock.

For the chicken, I buy the fresh cut up whole chicken pack you can get in the meat department of any grocery store.  I've never bought a whole real chicken and don't intend to any time soon. If you are making the chicken stock from scratch, use the chicken to make it; otherwise just boil the chicken until cooked.  I use half the chicken and freeze the other half for the next time.  The aji amarillo paste can be purchased in any international food store that carries Peruvian food, but the aji mirasol is a little harder to find (this can be omitted if you can't find it).  The aji amarillo paste is also something that can be made from scratch for this recipe, but I prefer the jarred version just as well.

Prep time:  60 mins
Cook time:  30 mins
Ingredients:
1/2 boiled chicken
2 cups chicken stock and 1 cup chicken stock, divided
8 slices white bread or 2 6" sub sandwich rolls
1 small red onion, finely diced
2 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp cup sugar
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
Salt and pepper
2 tbsp aji amarillo paste
1 tbsp aji mirasol paste (optional)
3 tbsp crushed walnuts
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 can (16 oz.) evaporated milk

Plus:
4-6 hardboiled eggs
Boiled yellow potatoes
Small can of sliced black olives

Preparation:
If you are using canned chicken stock, boil the chicken in boiling water for about 20 mins, until cooked through.   (When cooking this recipe, I buy a whole chicken to boil, using only half).  Let cool, then pull all the meat off the bones and shred the chicken by hand into very thin, stringy pieces.  Separate half of the chicken to use now and put half in a freezer bag to use next time.  Rip apart the sub rolls into medium sized chunks and place in a blender; add 2 cups chicken stock and let soak.

In a large skillet, sauté in a medium heat the olive oil, red onion and garlic until onion is soft.  Add oregano, cumin, sugar, vinegar, aji amarillo paste, aji mirasol paste, salt and pepper (to taste) and let cook about ten minutes over medium heat.

In the blender, blend the bread and two cups of chicken stock until it forms a creamy paste (you may need to add a little more chicken stock).  Pour the bread mixture into the skillet and mix through.  Add the chicken pieces, Parmesan cheese and walnuts and mix.  At this point, if the dish becomes "gummy", take the remaining one cup of chicken stock and add as much as necessary to keep it workable. Cook for a few minutes.  Lower the heat and add the evaporated milk, stirring constantly so that all the milk is dissolved into the dish. Remove from heat and let sit for a few minutes.

The dish can be served over (or along side) white rice and is served with cut, boiled yellow potatoes and sliced hard boiled eggs.  Sliced black olives are also put on top as garnish. This recipe makes a lot of food, I can easily get six meals out of this dish.

Enjoy!
Click here for printable version.

home     |      eats     |     contact