Garlicky and aromatic, pollo guisado is a quintessential comfort chicken dish in Latin American countries.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
I’ve been making pollo guisado for close to 30 years now.
Like most people who grew up eating pollo guisado, I equate its flavor and aroma with comfort.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
What Is Pollo Guisado?
Unlike stews in the U.S., pollo guisado has minimal vegetables and is always served with steamed white rice.
It was the dish she prepared most often for her and her seven siblings.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Ours being a middle-class family of five, stretching meals was a must.
As a result, each family has a different way of cooking it.
What I like most about pollo guisado is how “go-with-the-flow” it is.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
You don’t have carrots?
Need to get rid of some peas?
Throw a cup of them into this stew at the end of cooking.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Serve your pollo guisado oversteamed white or brown rice.
Stir in the lime juice to create a thick paste.
Add this mixture to a large mixing bowl, followed by the pieces of chicken.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Rub the marinade into the chicken, ensuring its covered completely.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate the chicken for 1 to 12 hours.
The longer the chicken marinates, the more flavorful the guisado will be.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
In a 6-quart Dutch oven or caldero, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
Add the brown sugar to the oil in the pot and stir it to dissolve it.
After 1 1/2 minutes, the sugar will turn a light brown and begin to bubble up.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Quickly add the marinated chicken to the pot, tossing it to coat it in the sugar.
Next, add the chicken stock, onions, bay leaves, sazon, and adobo.
Bring the liquid in the pot up to a boil, stirring once after the liquid starts to boil.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Cover the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low.
Allow the chicken to simmer for 20 minutes.
Stir to incorporate these ingredients and allow the liquid in the pot to come back up to a simmer.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Uncover the pot and stir the guisado.
Increase the heat to medium-high and allow the liquid to come to a rapid boil.
Turn the stove off and remove, then discard, the bay leaves.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
Stir the parsley or cilantro into the pollo guisado just before serving over steamed white rice.
Allow leftover pollo guisado to cool before transferring it to a food storage container.
Refrigerate for up to 3 days.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
To freeze pollo guisado, cool it to room temperature and transfer it to a zip-top freezer bag.
I usually double-bag the pollo guisado to prevent major spills.
Freeze the guisado laying flat.
Simply Recipes / Marta Rivera Diaz
After it’s frozen solid, stand the bag up in your freezer.
This takes up less freezer space and also makes thawing faster.
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