This pollo guisado recipe is a flavorful braised chicken stew popular in Caribbean and Latin American cuisines, with loads of chicken, so easy to make!
Pollo Guisado Recipe (Chicken Stew)
If you're looking for a chicken stew recipe that is huge on flavor with lots of seasonings and hearty ingredients, look no further than Pollo Guisado, my friends. This is the chicken stew you've been searching for.
Chicken stew is an easy choice for simple weeknight cooking. This is true in American where we can season up some inexpensive cuts of chicken, toss it into a pot with vegetables and liquid, then braise it until it's ready to enjoy.
It's also true of many Caribbean and Latin American countries, where Pollo Guisado is the standard. You'll find variations of this recipe from Dominican, Spanish, El Salvidor, Mexico and elsewhere. Ingredients vary from country to country and cook to cook.
This is more of a Puerto Rican Pollo Guisado, and the results are wonderful. You'll get so much flavor with this dish. It is so easy to make.
Let's talk about how we make pollo guisado, shall we?
Pollo Guisado Ingredients
- Chicken. Use a whole chicken for this recipe, cut up, about 2-1/2 pounds. You can use boneless, skinless chicken, but you'll get much more flavor with bone-in chicken.
- Seasonings. Use 2 tablespoons adobo seasoning and 1 tablespoon sazon seasoning, very popular seasonings in Latin American cuisine. Also bay leaf for the simmering.
- Oil. 2 tablespoons olive oil for browning the chicken.
- Vegetables. Use 1 small onion, 1 small bell pepper, (or use hotter peppers to your taste), 3 cloves garlic, 1/2 cup olives and 3 medium potatoes.
- Sofrito. I use 1/4 cup sofrito, though you can use more or less to your personal tastes. Try this homemade sofrito recipe.
- Liquid. Use 8 ounces tomato sauce and 1 cup chicken broth
- Garnish. Spicy chili flakes, fresh chopped parsley
How to Make Pollo Guisado - the Recipe Method
Season and Brown the Chicken. Season the chicken pieces with adobo and sazon seasoning. Be sure to get all sides. Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes to brown all sides, flipping half way through.
Vegetables and Liquid. Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic and sofrito. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the olives, potatoes, bay leaves, tomato sauce and chicken broth.
Boil, then Simmer. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and fall-off-the-bone. It should register 165 degrees internal (minimum) when measured with a food thermometer.
Garnish and Serve. Garnish with red pepper flakes and fresh chopped parsley and serve.
Boom! Done! Pollo guisado is ready to serve! Looks delicious, doesn't it? I'm ready to dig right into this amazing chicken stew. Such a great recipe.
Serving Suggestions for Pollo Guisado
Serve your pollo guisado in a bowl as a hearty chicken stew with some crusty bread to sop up the wonderful sauce. Or, serve it over rice.
Recipe Tips & Notes
Slow Cooker Pollo Guisado. You can easily use a slow cooker or crock pot to make your pollo guisado. Just be sure to brown the chicken in a pan first, then transfer everything to a slow cooker and cook on low for about 1.5 - 2 hours, or until the chicken is tender and cooked through. This is not a traditional method, but it works great.
The Chicken. It is best to use bone-in chicken for the overall flavor. Chicken skin is optional. I usually keep it on. This recipe does work with boneless chicken, however, so feel free to use boneless chicken breast, thighs, or your favorite cuts.
The Seasonings. I use both adobo seasoning and sazon seasoning, popular in Puerto Rican and Latin American cuisine. Feel free to use others, such as cumin or chili powders.
The Vegetables. You can easily stretch this recipe with more potatoes, or use other ingredients you might have on hand, such as carrots, rutabaga, peas, corn, or root vegetables.
Storage Information
Leftover pollo guisado will last in the refrigerator up to 5 days in a sealed container. You can easily reheat it in a pot on the stove top to enjoy again.
You can also freeze it for 3 months or longer in freezer containers.
That's it, my friends. I hope you enjoy this pollo guisado recipe. Let me know if you make it. I'd love to hear how it turned out for you. You can make it as spicy as you'd like.
Try Some of My Other Popular Recipes
- Cajun Baked Chicken Thighs
- Pernil (Puerto Rican Roast Pork)
- Puerto Rican Arroz con Pollo
- Arroz con Gandules
- Puerto Rican Pique
- Cuban Sandwich Recipe (Cubano Sandwich)
- Coconut Curry Chicken
- Chicken Paprikash (Paprika Chicken)
- Peruvian Chicken (Pollo a la Brasa)
- Harissa Chicken
- Chicken Mole
- Arepas Recipe
Got any questions? Ask away! I’m happy to help. If you enjoy this recipe, I hope you’ll leave a comment with some STARS. Also, please share it on social media. Don’t forget to tag us at #ChiliPepperMadness. I’ll be sure to share! Thanks! — Mike H.
Pollo Guisado Recipe (Chicken Stew)
Ingredients
- 2-1/2 pound chicken cut up, skin on
- 2 tablespoons adobo seasoning
- 1 tablespoon sazon seasoning
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small onion chopped
- 1 small bell pepper chopped (or use hotter peppers to your taste)
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 1/4 cup sofrito
- 1/2 cup olives
- 3 medium potatoes halved and quartered
- 2-3 bay leaves
- 8 ounces tomato sauce
- 1 cup chicken broth
- FOR GARNISH: Spicy chili flakes fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
- Season the chicken with adobo and sazon seasoning. Be sure to get all sides.
- Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 10 minutes to brown all sides, flipping half way through.
- Add the onion, bell pepper, garlic and sofrito. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Add the olives, potatoes, bay leaves, tomato sauce and chicken broth.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is tender and fall-off-the-bone. It should register 165 degrees internal (minimum) when measured with a food thermometer.
- Garnish with red pepper flakes and fresh chopped parsley and serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Maddie says
Hi Mike, I make your Adobo and Sazon Seasoning recipes, plus your Sofrito recipe, to use in this recipe…the result…spectacular! I make many more of your great recipes but have been too busy to respond to each. Thank you.
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks so much, Maddie! Glad to be helpful!!!
Michael says
I doubled the recipe for International Sunday at church. I hope everyone likes it. Everything came together as the recipe said. Haven't tasted it yet.
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
I hope it was enjoyed, Michael.
Karen says
We really liked it! Immediately saved it and will be making it again.. yum!!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Very nice! I appreciate it, Karen. We love this one! So good.
Christine says
Mike! You did it again. This is a winner. Like many of the others, I didn't add sofrito and I did add carrots. Being of middle European descent I served it over wide egg noodles. I have one question. What kind of olives? I only had pimento stuffed and actually forgot to add them. I'm not sure what you used in photo.
Thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome! Thanks, Christine! I used green olives here and love it. I appreciate the comments! Glad you enjoyed it!
Halima says
I literally want to dive into my screen and mop that sauce up. Don't even want the chicken, just the sauce LOL.
We don't have Sazon seasoning here in SA, and I looked at your recipe and we don't get annatto here either. What can I substitute it with please
Thank you Mike
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Haha, thanks, Halima. Annato is quite a unique ingredient so it could be worth ordering some online, but for subs (mostly for color), you could use paprika with a touch of turmeric, or saffron. Enjoy!
Kort says
Sounds D lish, thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks, Kort! So good!!
Natasha says
We discovered this recipe last winter and now make it at least once a month. My children love it and they are not soup lovers. It's easy to make a large pot and freeze for the week. Thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Nice! Glad you love it as much as we do, Natasha! I appreciate it!
Mickey B. says
Hands down the best PR recipe I've found online! I just made an awesome pernil I found online but it's no comparison to the authentic flavor and ease of making like this guisado. Thanks for sharing
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Awesome to hear! Glad you enjoyed it, Mickey. High praise indeed!
Genoveva says
I am half Puerto Rican and always go to this Puerto Rican restaurant to get pollo guisado… although good… imo it was too salty. Yet the best I could get in the town I am in… so I was excited to try this recipe.. all my ingredients were organic with the exception of the sofrito.
There is even a organic adobo seasoning which honestly is no comparison to the other brand. Definitely high quality seasoning with no chemicals.
I have made this recipe twice now and it is hands down my favorite and I can’t even see myself eating out anymore because I can make it better at home.
Something just hits different when your ingredients are organic. Including organic chicken.
No additives or preservatives or added color blah… just all organic all real food along with this recipe makes the perfect pollo guisado.
Hands down the best I’ve ever had and some picky eaters in my family think so too! Totally cleaned the bone.
Thanks!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Thanks so much, Genoveva! Very high praise! Super happy you found this one and enjoy it. So good for sure!
Renee Thomas says
Delicious! I added some sliced carrots as a reviewer suggested. Perfection!
T says
Was wondering if I could do this in a crock pot
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Absolutely! Enjoy.
Elizabeth milano says
can and how to make this stew in a crock pot please u
Mike Hultquist says
Elizabeth, this is discussed in the Recipe Notes & Tips section of the post. FYI.
Ashley says
I’ve made this recipe about a dozen times since my sister sent it to me and it just does not disappoint. This is the first pollo guisado recipe that actually reminds me of the one my abuelita used to make when I was a child. This recipe is an absolute keeper and I am so glad my sister stumbled upon your site. Thank you!
Michael Hultquist - Chili Pepper Madness says
Glad you enjoy it, Ashley! We love this recipe.