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
Shelmira says
I made this before and it was absolutely delicious!!!!! I am also making it again as I type this message. Loved , Loved , Loved this recipe.
Mike H. says
Thank you so much, Shelmira! Super happy to read your review.
Melissahe says
Wow! This recipe was soo good my family requested I make it again today. I had everything on hand except for the soffrito when I first made it Monday. A trip to the grocery wasn't in the cards so I decided to wing it using a can of fire roasted tomatoes with green chilis and followed your soffrito recipe as best I could with the other ingredients. I froze the remaining in 1/4 c silicon cups. But I'll definitely make a full batch from scratch soon. The chicken was just fall off the bone tender and the flavor of the stew is delicious. I love recipes that are simple and full of flavor!
Mike Hultquist says
Glad you enjoyed it, Melissahe. And almost 5 stars! Maybe the sofrito will tip it over the edge the next time, haha. Cheers! Thanks for sharing!
Kim says
can I do it in the oven on what temp and time?
Mike Hultquist says
Kim, yes, follow the recipe through Step #4, then set the pot into the oven. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the chicken is tender and easily pulls apart. Let me know how it turns out for you. Enjoy!
Katie says
Absolutely delicious I'm delighted to have discovered this recipe. many thanks
Mike Hultquist says
Excellent! Thanks so much, Katie. Glad you are enjoying it.
Annmarie says
I just wanted to say this is SUCH AN AMAZING pollo guisado recipe, myPuerto Rican mother in law first introduced me to this dish and this is a replica! I just add a touch of brown sugar towards the end to add a bit more complexity of flavor as she did. 12/10!!!!
Mike H. says
Awesome - thank you, Annmarie!
Colin says
I made this today, with a slight variation. The potatoes are sliced, shallow fried until just starting to brown, then put in a baking dish. Everything is then done as the recipe but only half cooked. Then poured over the potatoes, and everything finished in the oven. Also, I make chicken stock from cubes but use beer, not water.
Mike Hultquist says
Sounds wonderful! Thanks, Colin.
Pepita says
I recommend reducing the amount of adobo seasoning used at the start by half.
I made it with half and it was delicious.
Johnnie says
Good Stuff
Happiehappie
rachael secrest says
can this be safe in the slow cooker
Mike Hultquist says
Absolutely, works great in a slow cooker.
Terry Bisgrove says
Pollo Guisado is excellent! I made this recently and it was a big hit. The wife wants to see it in the regular meal rotation. I used Goya Sofrito, but next time I will make my own sofrito using your recipe.
Mike Hultquist says
This is awesome to hear, Terry! Very happy you both enjoyed it!
Marlaine Dennehy says
I have to say my husband and I love this recipe so good. Thank you for the recipe.
Mike H. says
You are very welcome, Marlaine. Enjoy, guys!
Meg says
If I don't want to make sofrito, how do you feel about Goya jarred sofrito and do I use the tomato based or green one? Thank you!
Mike Hultquist says
That works great, Meg. Absolutely. I would use the tomato based, but either will work. Enjoy!
Michael says
This recipe is Awesome!!! Better Than Bouillon has a Sofrito that is really really good!! Might need to order online if the local grocery stores don’t have it. Pricey but I personally think it’s worth the price!!
Mike Hultquist says
Thanks so much, Michael!