Pollo Guisado

Pollo guisada is a classic Puerto Rican chicken stew. Its a nice easy one pot meal, perfect for a cold Sunday afternoon.  

Ingredients: 

• 10-12 chicken parts 
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil 
• 2 tbsp olive oil 
• 6-8 cups of water
• 15 oz. tomato sauce (I love Costco's organic tomato sauce) 
• 4 tbsp sofrito 
• 2 bay leaves 
• 1 tsp olives with pimentos 
• 1 cup red wine 
• baby carrots 
• 2 potatoes 
• Salt and pepper to taste 

Instructions: 

Heat vegetable oil on high heat in a large pot or dutch oven. When the oil is hot, brown chicken in batches.

When the chicken is browned, remove from the pot and drain the fat.  Add olive oil and heat.  Add sofrito and tomato sauce. Cook for 3-5 minutes. Return chicken to the pot.  Add enough water to cover the chicken.  Add olives, red wine, and bay leaves. Cook for 1 hour, then add potatoes and carrots. Cook for another 30 minutes or until the sauce has thickened.  It is best served over rice, but if you are looking for a low-carb side, try cauliflower rice.  

Chicken Stir Fry

I was in the mood for stir fry tonight and whipped this up. Stir fry is a quick simple way to get healthy portions of veggies and protein. 

Ingredients: 

• 2 large chicken breasts 
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 red pepper 
• 1 green pepper 
• 3 scallions 
• 1 carrot sliced 
• 1 head of broccoli 
• 1 teaspoon fresh grated ginger (can use 1/2 tsp ground ginger) 
• 1/2 cup of kale
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 1 tablespoon chili garlic sauce (add more or less according to your taste) 
• 1 tablespoon orange juice 
• 1/2 cup of sugar (if you do not like a sweet sauce, use 1/4 cup or less) 
• 1/4 cup soy sauce 
• 1/2 cup of water 
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 4 tsp sesame oil
• 1/4 cup of water and 2 tsp cornstarch mixed 

Cut chicken breasts into thin strips. Heat oil in pan on medium heat.  Once oil is hot place chicken chicken in the pan. Do not overcrowd the pan, cook in batches if necessary.  Cook chicken for two minutes on each side. While the chicken is cooking, make the sauce. in a bowl, mix soy sauce, 1/2 cup of water, sugar, rice vinegar, orange juice, sesame oil, chili garlic sauce). Once all chicken has browned, remove from the pan and set aside. Place peppers, carrots and scallions in the pan. Cook until they have softened.  Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the sauce to the pan.  Cook for three minutes.  Add the cornstarch mixture and cook for 1 minute. Add broccoli and kale. Return chicken to the pan to finish cooking (about 2 minutes).  Serve over rice.

Roasted Chicken

This latin roasted chicken recipe is delicious and easy to make thanks to the use of sofrito as the base. 

Ingredients: 

• 4-5 lb chicken
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 6 cloves of garlic 
• 4 tablespoons of sofrito
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic powder
• butcher twine (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375º.  Remove the giblets and neck bones from the cavity. Place the chicken in a roasting pan. Gently separate the skin from the chicken, being careful not to pierce the skin. Place 1/2 tablespoon of sofrito under the skin.  Rub olive oil on the skin of the entire chicken. Season well with salt and pepper.  Rub 1 tablespoon of sofrito on top of the skin.  Place the remaining sofrito and all of the garlic inside the cavity.  Quarter the onion and place it inside the cavity as well.  

Place the chicken breast side up. Tie the legs of the chicken together using butcher's twine.  Tuck the wings underneath the chicken.  Place in the oven and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes before serving.  

Sopa de Fideos

There is nothing better on a cold winter day than a comforting bowl of soup.  My grandmother made the best sopa de fideos that I have ever had and I have tried hard to recreate it. I think I have come pretty close, but you can try it yourself and let me know. 

Ingredients: 

• 2 tbsp of olive oil 
• 8 oz can of tomato sauce 
• 2-4 tbsp of sofrito
• 15 chicken pieces (legs, thighs, or wings) 
• 10-12 cups of water 
• 4 oz thin spaghetti  
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro (optional)

Instructions:

Start by heating  olive oil in a large stew pot over medium heat. Once the oil is hot add the tomato sauce and sofrito. Stir and heat for approximately 1 minute. Add chicken and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2hours. After chicken is cooked, remove from the pot and let cool for 10 minutes. Add noodles and cook for another ten minutes. While noodles are cooking and chicken has cooled, pull chicken from the bone and shred into bite sized pieces.  Return the chicken to the pot once noodles are cooked and add salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another minute to warm the chicken through.  Serve with a few sprigs of cilantro for garnish.

Enjoy!