Ají de Gallina (Peruvian Chili Chicken)
Photo: Dtarazona, Public domain
Ají de gallina is a Peruvian dish of shredded chicken in a creamy yellow chili sauce. Bread soaked in chicken stock and blended gives the sauce its body, while pecans and Parmesan add richness and the chilis bring steady heat you can adjust to taste. Its roots lie with French chefs who left Europe after 1789 and cooked for wealthy creole families in Peru. Serve it over garlicky rice with potatoes, eggs and olives.
Instructions
Boil the chicken in salted water with the stock cube until cooked through. Lift it out, remove the bones, pull the meat into bite-size pieces, and keep the cooking stock.
Heat the oil in a saucepan and add the onion, garlic and finely chopped chilis with salt and pepper. Fry until the onion is soft and golden.
Soak the bread in two cups of the reserved stock, then blend it for a couple of minutes until smooth. Pour the liquid into the saucepan.
Cook the sauce slowly for about ten minutes, stirring, until it thickens.
While the sauce simmers, cook the rice. Fry the garlic for a couple of seconds, stir in the rice and salt, then add water. Once it boils, cover the pot and cook very gently for about 20 minutes, until all the water has been absorbed. A cup of rice to two cups of water works well.
Stir the pecans, Parmesan and chicken pieces into the sauce. Cook until it is thick and creamy.
About five minutes before serving, add the evaporated milk and keep the heat low.
Spoon the chicken over the rice. Garnish with halved potatoes, eggs quartered lengthwise, and the black olives.
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