This Pollo Guisado Recipe (Dominican Chicken Stew) is made with onion, potatoes, bell peppers, sazón and braised to perfection.
Pollo Guisado is an amazing chicken dish with meat that falls off the bone and contains rich Dominican flavors. One of my favorite things to do in NYC would be to go over to my friend Kristina's house, bring over a bottle of wine, and she would make the most amazing Pollo Guisado. The key ingredient is Sazon, which is made up of cumin, coriander, annatto and oregano. So of course, I had to make it.
If you love chicken, feel free to try my Latin Braised Chicken Drumsticks or my Marry Me Chicken.
Jump to:
- Why you will love this Chicken Stew Recipe
- What is Pollo Guisado?
- What is the difference between Adobo and Sazon?
- Latin Chicken Stew Ingredients
- How to make Pollo Guisado
- Substitutions
- Variations
- What to serve with Pollo Guisado
- Equipment
- Storage
- Top tip
- Pollo Guisado Recipe (Chicken Stew)
- Food safety
Why you will love this Chicken Stew Recipe
Full of flavor: The combination of the sazon and oregano will pack this chicken with so much flavor.
Great for any weather: I love eating this in both the summer and winter months.
Serves a crowd: You can definitely double the recipe and make a ton of chicken in a large pot. The browning will have to be in batches and then throw it all in one pot on low heat.
What is Pollo Guisado?
This pollo guisado recipe is a flavorful braised latin chicken stew popular in the Carribean. There are many variations in the Dominican Republic as well as Puerto Rico. This recipe came from my friend who is Dominican, but some other Pollo Guisados can be Puerto Rican as well. They both use bone-in chicken that are braised and cooked with vegetables. The seasonings vary from sazón, adobo, and/or sofrito.
What is the difference between Adobo and Sazon?
If you were to put Adobo on chicken it really just gives it a chicken taste. Sazon on the other hand is much more savory and distinctive. It goes well with tomatoes and peppers. To be fair, the box for store bought Sazon says to put it on everything! In Spanish, sazonar is "to season" and Sazon does just that!
Latin Chicken Stew Ingredients
You'll only need a few simple ingredients to make this. The exact measurements are listed in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of what you'll need:
- Bone-in chicken thighs or whole chicken cut up
- Olive oil
- Yellow onion
- Garlic
- Potatoes
- Bell peppers
- Sazón
- Tomatoes
- Chicken broth
- Oregano
- Chicken bouillon
- Bay leaves
- Lime
- Cilantro
See recipe card for quantities for this Pollo Guisado Recipe (Dominican Chicken Stew).
How to make Pollo Guisado
Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Season all over with the packet of Sazon and salt on both sides. Add olive oil in a large saucepan on medium heat. When oil is hot, add the chicken and brown for 4 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken and set aside on a plate.
In the same pan, add more oil if needed. Add the potatoes, garlic, onion, bell peppers and salt, stirring, and cook until the onion and peppers are soft, about 6-8 minutes. Add the diced tomato, oregano, chicken bouillon, bay leaves, a cup of chicken broth and salt and pepper.
Stir, reduce heat to low heat, return the chicken, cover and cook for 1 hour and a half.
When the chicken is ready, squeeze half a lime into the sauce and stir. Garnish with cilantro.
Hint: Keep the heat low and covered well.
Substitutions
Chicken: I used a whole chicken and cut it into parts. You can use any style chicken, as long as it is bone in.
Onion: I used a yellow onion but you can use a red or white onion.
Sazon: Sazon completa can be found in the ethnic foods section of your grocery store. There are many variations. You could also combine annatto, garlic powder, and onion powder to make your own.
Potatoes: You can use baby potatoes, russet potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes, as long as they are diced.
Peppers: I used green bell peppers, but feel free to use any color you want.
Variations
Cooking is a chance to be creative! Have fun with it and feel free to make your own variation.
- Spicy - add chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish.
- Deluxe - add olives, sofrito, carrots, or adobo.
What to serve with Pollo Guisado
This chicken works with so many different dishes:
- I love pairing with tostones, to give this a nice crunch.
- You cant make Pollo Guisado without rice and beans on the side. This Moro Rice cooks the rice and beans in the same pot, which makes clean up easier.
- Mashed potatoes go great as well.
- If you want a simple rice recipe, this Cilantro Lime Rice would pair well.
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Stone bakeware takes longer to heat up than metal pans, and also retain heat for longer, which could make the recipe more watery, or burnt on the outsides.
Storage
This will be good in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
These ingredients don't stand up well to freezing.
Top tip
Make sure the heat is set to low when covering the chicken. Keep an eye out and make sure the liquid doesn't fully evaporate, and if it does, throw in a bit of broth to keep it moist.
Pollo Guisado Recipe (Chicken Stew)
- Total Time: 1 Hour and 40 minutes
- Yield: 3 servings 1x
Description
This Pollo Guisado Recipe (Dominican Chicken Stew) is made with onion, potatoes, bell peppers, sazon, tomatoes and a ton of spices.
Ingredients
- 1 whole chicken, cut into 10 pieces
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 6 baby potatoes, chopped
- 2 bell peppers, sliced
- 1 sazon envelope (optional: with cilantro and achiote)
- 1 8 oz can of diced tomatoes
- 1 cup of chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon of oregano
- 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and pepper, as desired
- Half a lime
- 1 tablespoon of cilantro
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry with paper towels. Season all over with the packet of Sazon and salt on both sides.
- Add olive oil in a large saucepan on medium heat. When oil is hot, add the chicken and brown for 4 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken and set aside on a plate.
- In the same pan, add more oil if needed. Add the potatoes, garlic, onion, bell peppers and salt, stirring, and cook until the onion and peppers are soft, about 6-8 minutes. Add the diced tomato, oregano, chicken bouillon, bay leaves, a cup of chicken broth and salt and pepper. Stir, reduce heat to low heat, return the chicken, cover and cook for 1 hour and a half.
- When the chicken is ready, squeeze half a lime into the sauce and stir. Garnish with cilantro.
Notes
- You can substitute the chicken broth with water and a cube of chicken bouillon.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 Hour 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Cooking
- Cuisine: Dominican
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 171.8
- Sugar: 6.2 g
- Sodium: 228.8 mg
- Fat: 4.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.2 g
- Fiber: 1.7 g
- Protein: 19.8 g
- Cholesterol: 47.4 mg
Food safety
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
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