During a busy catering event, a woman from France approached me. She pointed at the Ají de Gallina and said, «This dish feels like a hug.» She told me how it reminded her of a creamy chicken stew her own grandmother used to make, but with this surprising, vibrant flavor she couldn’t place. She was fascinated by how something could feel so comforting and yet so new.
I explained that this is the essence of Ají de Gallina. It’s a dish with deep roots in our Spanish and French culinary heritage, but transformed into something uniquely Peruvian with the magic of our ají amarillo. It’s the ultimate comfort food, a dish made for sharing, where stories are passed from one generation to the next. For that woman, it was a taste of a shared human experience—the comforting embrace of a grandmother’s cooking, no matter where you are in the world.
The Recipe: Ají de Gallina for the European Kitchen
- Yields: Serves 4 people
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 large chicken breast (about 500g)
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 4 tbsp Andes Mundo Ají Amarillo Paste
- 4 slices of white sandwich bread, crusts removed
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
- 2 boiled yellow potatoes, sliced
- 2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
- Black olives for garnish
- Salt and white pepper to taste
- Served with: steamed white rice
Instructions:
- Cook and Shred the Chicken: In a pot, cover the chicken breast with water and add a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil and cook for 20-25 minutes until cooked through. Remove the chicken, let it cool, and shred it with two forks. Crucial: Reserve the chicken broth.
- Make the Creamy Base: Soak the slices of bread in the evaporated milk for a few minutes until soft.
- Create the Flavor: In a large pan, heat a little oil over medium heat. Sauté the chopped onion until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Stir in our vibrant Ají Amarillo paste and cook for 2-3 minutes, allowing the flavors to deepen and become fragrant.
- Blend the Sauce: Transfer the onion mixture to a blender. Add the soaked bread and milk. Blend until you have a perfectly smooth, creamy sauce.
- Combine: Pour the sauce back into the pan. Stir in the Parmesan cheese and the shredded chicken. Cook over low heat, stirring. If the sauce is too thick, add a splash of the reserved chicken broth until it reaches a beautiful, flowing consistency.
- Finish and Serve: Stir in the chopped walnuts and season with salt and white pepper. Serve the creamy chicken over white rice with the sliced potatoes. Garnish with slices of hard-boiled egg and black olives.
From Our Community
The French woman’s feeling of a «hug» is universal. It’s just as Elena, a customer from Chiclayo, described it to me: «My abuela made this for every birthday. Her tip, which I now share with you, was to add a tiny pinch of turmeric to make the color even more golden and happy.» That idea of comfort also resonated with Mark, who attended a workshop. «I never thought bread could make a sauce so creamy without being heavy!» he said. «It’s my new favorite comfort food to make on a rainy Dublin evening, and that pinch of turmeric really works.»
Final Tip
My secret is to lightly toast the walnuts in a dry pan for a few minutes before chopping them. This simple step releases their oils and gives the entire dish an incredible nutty aroma and a deeper, more complex flavor that beautifully complements the creaminess.
The soul of this comforting dish is the Ají Amarillo Paste. You can find the very same one I use, full of authentic Peruvian sunshine, right here.