Ají de gallina

Name: Ají de gallina
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Peru
Ingredients: 800 g chicken thighs or a whole chicken, poached and shredded; 4 tbsp ají amarillo paste (from a jar, widely available in Latin food shops); 4 slices day-old white bread, crusts removed; 150 ml evaporated milk; 50 g walnuts, finely chopped or ground; 50 g Parmesan or feta cheese, grated; 1 large onion, finely chopped; 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 3 tbsp vegetable oil; 0.5 tsp ground cumin; 0.5 tsp turmeric (for colour, not traditional but common); 300 ml chicken stock (from poaching the chicken); 1 tsp salt, plus more to taste; To serve: white rice, boiled yellow potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, black olives

Peru's beloved yellow chilli chicken stew: creamy, golden, and deeply Andean

Origin: Peru

From the journey of Chilli Pepper.

Ají de gallina (chilli chicken) is one of the most beloved dishes in Peruvian cuisine, a golden, creamy stew of shredded chicken in a sauce built from ají amarillo (the yellow Peruvian chilli), soaked bread, walnuts, onion, and cheese. The Andes were an independent centre of chilli cultivation, separate from Mexico, and the ají amarillo (Capsicum baccatum) is the chilli most completely associated with Peruvian identity, its orange-yellow colour and its flavour profile, fruity and hot simultaneously, are found in no other chilli variety in the world. The dish reflects the complex layering of Peruvian food history: the Andean chilli tradition, the Spanish colonial addition of chicken, bread, and cheese as thickeners, and the African influence (brought by enslaved people during the colonial period) in the use of toasted bread to enrich sauces. The result is simultaneously indigenous, Spanish, and Afro-Peruvian: a syncretic dish of extraordinary character. Ají de gallina is served at family celebrations, on restaurant menus, and as a Sunday lunch staple across all classes of Peruvian society, typically over white rice and boiled yellow potatoes.

Ingredients

Protein

800 g chicken thighs or a whole chicken, poached and shredded

Chilli

4 tbsp ají amarillo paste (from a jar, widely available in Latin food shops)

Thickening

4 slices day-old white bread, crusts removed

Cream

150 ml evaporated milk

Nuts

50 g walnuts, finely chopped or ground

Cheese

50 g Parmesan or feta cheese, grated

Base

1 large onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Fat

3 tbsp vegetable oil

Spice

0.5 tsp ground cumin
0.5 tsp turmeric (for colour, not traditional but common)

Liquid

300 ml chicken stock (from poaching the chicken)

Seasoning

1 tsp salt, plus more to taste

To serve

To serve: white rice, boiled yellow potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, black olives

Method

Poach the chicken in water with onion, garlic, bay leaf, and salt for 25–30 minutes until cooked through. Reserve the stock. Allow to cool, then shred the meat into rough pieces.
Soak the bread in 150ml of the warm chicken stock for 5 minutes until fully saturated. Blend with the evaporated milk into a smooth paste. Set aside.
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium heat. Cook the onion for 8 minutes until very soft. Add the garlic, cumin, and turmeric and stir for 1 minute.
Add the ají amarillo paste. Stir and fry for 3 minutes until fragrant and slightly darkened.
Add the bread paste. Stir to combine. Add remaining chicken stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring often, until the sauce is smooth, thick, and golden.
Add the shredded chicken and walnuts. Stir in the cheese. Simmer gently for 5 minutes. Season with salt to taste.
Serve over white rice and boiled potatoes. Top with halved hard-boiled eggs and black olives in the traditional Peruvian style.

Notes

Ají amarillo paste is the non-negotiable heart of this dish (its flavour is unlike any other chilli. It is available in most Latin American food shops and increasingly in large supermarkets. The walnuts add a faint bitterness and body that is characteristic) do not substitute with other nuts. The dish reheats well and is if anything better the following day. Some Peruvian families add a little peanut butter along with the walnuts for a richer, nuttier sauce: a delicious variation.

The Gastrographer

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control