Ají De Gallina Recipes

AJI DE GALLINA

Steps:

• Place chicken breasts, onion, carrot, and 2 cloves garlic in a large saucepan, pour in 2 quarts of water and slowly bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Skim off the foam which forms on top, then cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until the chicken is tender, about 30 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate and allow to cool. Strain the resulting chicken stock, discarding the vegetables.
• Pour evaporated milk and 1/2 cup chicken stock into the bowl of a blender. Add bread cubes and puree until smooth. Add Parmesan cheese and walnuts; puree until smooth. Shred the cooled chicken and discard the bones.
• Heat vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Stir in minced garlic and minced onion; cook until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in shredded chicken and aji amarillo until heated through. Pour in bread puree and cook until hot, stirring frequently. Add more chicken stock if needed to keep from getting too thick. Season with turmeric and simmer for 5 minutes more.
• Serve garnished with hard-cooked egg slices and sprinkled with kalamata olives.

AJI DE GALLINA

Steps:

• Simmer the chicken breasts in the broth until just cooked through, about 20 minutes. Set aside chicken breasts to cool.
• Strain broth and use it to prepare your rice according to package directions. Set aside any leftover broth.
• In a food processor or blender, add the bread cubes, evaporated milk and 1/2 cup broth. Process until smooth. Add the Parmesan and walnuts and process again until the mixture is smooth.
• In a pot, saute the chopped onion for about 3 minutes, then add the garlic and continue to saute until the onion is translucent, about 2 minutes more. While the onion and garlic are sauteing, shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces using your hands or 2 forks.
• When the onion is translucent, add the turmeric and cumin, stirring to toast the spices for a moment. Add the shredded chicken and the aji paste and stir the mixture to coat chicken with the spices.
• Pour in the bread/milk mixture over the chicken and stir over medium heat until the sauce is bubbling and the chicken is heated through. If the sauce thickens too much, thin it out with some leftover broth. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve over rice with garnishes.

PERUVIAN AJI DE GALLINA

Steps:

• Fill a pot with water and add chicken breasts. Bring to a boil. Dissolve chicken bouillon in 1 cup hot water; add to the chicken when water is boiling. Continue to boil until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear, about 20 minutes. Place chicken on a plate to cool; shred with 2 forks. Reserve 2 cups cooking liquid and then empty the pot.
• Place the same pot over medium-high heat and add enough oil to coat the bottom. Saute onion in the hot oil until translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add garlic and cook, 1 to 2 minutes. Add aji paste, turmeric, cumin, salt, and pepper; saute for 2 minutes. Turn off heat.
• Combine bread, evaporated milk, walnuts, and Parmesan cheese in an electric blender. Blend until smooth; add the seasoned mixture from the pot to the blender and blend until smooth once more. Mixture should be bright yellow.
• Place the pot over medium-low heat and add yellow mixture. Cook, stirring frequently, 3 to 4 minutes; this will thicken quickly. Add reserved chicken liquid in small increments until mixture loosens some. Add shredded chicken and more liquid as needed until you get a thick, soup-like texture. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

CHICKEN IN CHILE SAUCE (AJí DE GALLINA)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle.
• If using quail eggs, cover with cold water in a very small saucepan. Bring to a simmer and cook, covered, 5 minutes. Rinse eggs under cold water to stop cooking, then peel.
• Soak bread in milk until softened, then mash with a fork.
• Cook onion and garlic in 1 1/2 tablespoons oil with turmeric and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened. Stir in chile paste and bread mixture and simmer, stirring occasionally, until very thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in broth and cheese and simmer 1 minute. Carefully transfer to a blender with walnuts and blend until very smooth, about 1 minute (use caution when blending hot liquids). Transfer sauce to a medium saucepan and keep warm, covered, over very low heat, stirring occasionally.
• Pat chicken dry, then season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot, then brown half of chicken, skin side down first, turning once, about 8 minutes total. Transfer, skin side up, to a 4-sided sheet pan. Pour off oil from skillet and wipe clean, then brown remaining chicken in remaining tablespoon oil in same manner.
• Roast chicken in oven until just cooked through, about 15 minutes.
• Halve quail eggs lengthwise.
• Spoon some of sauce onto a large platter, then arrange chicken on top. Garnish with quail eggs and serve with remaining sauce on the side.
• What to drink:
• Concha y Toro Terrunyo Casablanca Valley Sauvignon Blanc '07

AJí DE GALLINA

Steps:

• Blend crackers, evaporated milk and aji. Blend until creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add shredded chicken breast and blended cracker mixture to pot on medium heat. Stir and let it reduce on low heat until it is creamy. If it is too thick you can add more evaporated milk. Stir constantly to avoid burning. Taste it to check for saltiness. Serve ají de gallina over yellow potatoes with white rice. Garnish with slices of hard boiled egg and black olives.
• Note: you can add more Aji amarillo(yellow paste) if so desires a spicier dish.