Warm your bones and fill your belly with Pollo Guisado, a hearty Puerto Rican chicken stew that’s packed with flavor, easy to make, and ready to devour in about an hour. Granted, we eat this year-round on my little island, where it rarely dips below 70 degrees. But it’s especially delightful when the weather turns chilly and you’re looking for a hearty meal to make you feel all sorts of toasty.
A Note On Authenticity
This is not a historically authentic recipe. We strive to create recipes that are accessible to everyone, which means ingredients need to be available at a mainstream budget grocery store. We test recipes using the least amount of steps, tools, and ingredients while still honoring the spirit of the recipe. I was born and raised in Puerto Rico and look forward to a time when our ingredients are available in mainstream markets. Until then, buen provecho!
What Is Pollo Guisado?
Pollo Guisado (pronounced puh-yuh gee-sah-duh) is a Puerto Rican stew made up of braised chicken, potatoes, carrots, and olives in a tomato-based broth. Like most savory dishes from the island, its deep flavor comes from sofrito, a blend of peppers, onions, garlic, and cilantro. The unctious chicken, briny olives, and subtle sweetness of the carrots make a truly perfect bite.
CAN I SUBSTITUTE THE CHicken?
Traditionally, this is a bone-in chicken stew. To create a quicker cooking time, and manageable bites, we have opted for chopped skinless, boneless chicken thighs. Feel free to use bone in chicken thighs, or butcher a whole chicken. You can also use any protein that benefits from a long braise. You can substitute chicken with chuck roast, top round, or even steak. Using these cuts will lengthen your cooking time by thirty or so minutes. If you are vegetarian or vegan, use a vegetable-based broth and substitute the chicken with mushrooms. Brown them, just as you would the chicken, which helps them release moisture and develop big flavors.
What To Do If Your Broth Won’t Thicken
If you find your broth to be entirely too watery at the end of the cook, here are a few tips to help you thicken it.
- Uncover the pot and turn the heat up to medium-high. Allowing the steam to escape will reduce the broth and thicken it.
- Break up some of the potatoes. The starches will naturally thicken the broth.
- If all else fails, use a cornstarch slurry. Mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with two tablespoons of cold water. Add it to the stew, then bring the stew to a boil for 1 minute while continuously stirring.
What To Serve With POllO GuiSAdo
On the island, this stew is traditionally served over white rice. But feel free to break with tradition and serve it with:
Pollo Guisado (Puerto Rican Chicken Stew)
Servings 4 2 cup servingsIngredients
- 1.5 lb chicken thighs, boneless and skinless ($4.49)
- 2 tsp adobo, all-purpose seasoning* ($0.08)
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.08)
- 1 yellow onion, large dice ($0.42)
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped ($0.14)
- 1/2 cup sofrito ($0.72)
- 8 oz tomato sauce ($0.59)
- 1 packet sazón seasoning with annatto* ($0.17)
- 2 bay leaves ($0.20)
- 2 tsp dried oregano ($0.20)
- 1/4 cup manzanilla olives, pimiento-stuffed ($0.33)
- 1 large potato, 2-inch dice (about 1 cup) ($1.12)
- 2 large carrots, 1/4-inch rounds (about 1 cup ) ($0.32)
- 3 cups chicken stock ($0.51)
Instructions
- Dry the chicken thighs thoroughly with paper towels. Cut into 2-inch cubes. Season with Adobo.
- Set a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the oil. Once it has warmed, add the chicken in one layer and brown.
- Once the chicken has browned, remove it from the pot and set it aside. Add the onion to the pot, and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Add the sofrito and tomato sauce. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until it is thick and bubbly.
- Add the sazón, bay leaves, oregano, olives, potatoes, carrots, and chicken broth. Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Add the chicken back into the pot. Lower the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 40-50 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
- Take the stew off the heat, sample it, and add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the bay leaves before serving.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
Notes
- 2 Tbsp salt
- 1 Tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground oregano
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/3 teaspoon ground annatto
- 1/8 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/8 teaspoon ground oregano
Nutrition
How to Make Pollo Guisado – Step by Step Photos
Dry the 1.5 pounds of chicken thighs thoroughly with paper towels. Then dice them into 2-inch cubes. Finally, season the chicken with 2 teaspoons of adobo. (Helpful hint: freeze the chicken thighs for about 15 minutes to make them easier to dice.)
Set a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the 2 tablespoons of oil to the pre-heated Dutch oven. Once it has warmed, add the diced chicken in one layer. Do not crowd the pot. Brown in batches if necessary. Remove the chicken from the pot and set it aside.
Next, add the diced yellow onion to the pot and cook until translucent, about 2 minutes. Then add the 3 cloves of finely chopped garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the 1/2 cup of sofrito and 8 ounces of tomato sauce to the pot.
Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until it is thick and bubbly. If you run a spoon through it, the sauce should remain divided.
Add the packet of sazón, 2 teaspoons of oregano, 2 bay leaves, 1 cup of diced potatoes, 1 cup of sliced carrots, 1/4 cup of manzanilla olives, and 3 cups of chicken stock into the pot.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then add the chicken back into the pot. Lower the heat, cover the pot and simmer for 40-50 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. If the stew hasn’t thickened, break a few of the potatoes apart with a fork, and keep the stew simmering with the lid off until it thickens.
When it is off the heat, sample the soup and add salt and pepper to taste. Remove the bay leaves before serving. Garnish with cilantro (optional) and serve with white rice (optional). As we say in Puerto Rico, buen provecho!
I love Budget bytes but this is the first recipe I had to leave a comment for to say it was so good! My husband and I ate it all up, perfect for fall. Thank you!
Holy ish, Lex! Thank you! Stoked you liked it. Thanks for the comment! XOXO -Monti
Totally delicious- I’m loving this soup! Magnificent flavor and awesome textures with the olives as well as the potato skins which I left on. Will definitely make this again and again!
Ayyyyy! Thank you! XOXO -Monti
I absolutely loved this and used bone in chicken thighs and drumsticks as that is what I had on hand. Keep sharing recipes like this! So hearty and delicious. Also I added a spoonful of coconut cream bc I thought it would compliment the flavors- it did!
Great recipe! Tried it for the first time the other day and it was delicious, so flavorful and tasty. Would definitely make it again. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for making it! xoxo Monti
It’s a good recipe, however, traditionally PRican recipe dish is cooked with bone-in chicken parts. This adds more flavor and red wine is added and served with white rice. No olives because of salt, but capers were added. My grandmother and my mother always made it this way.
Hi Sonia! Love a traditional Pollo Guisado! Please see my note on authenticity and why I made changes to the traditional recipe. XOXO -Monti
I made this yesterday and it is delicious and so flavorful. Even my toddler devoured it. And it tastes even better today. I’ll definitely be remaking!
Thank you so much! XOXO -Monti
Tastes great, took me 90min (had to make the sofrito and the spice mixes).
Good for you for making your own spice blends and sofrito! I love to hear that! XOXO -Monti
Great recipe, followed it to the tee and love it. Chicken was really tender. I didn’t use olives and I added peas and two celery sticks. Will be making this again.
Love the subs! Make it yours! XOXO -Monti
Scrumptious!
Also using whole pieces of the chicken makes it even better.
Where are your ingredient prices based? I live in chicago and even shopping at a mid level store like Jewel Osco, the prices for these ingredients are mostly three times as much as listed here. Any suggestions by location?
We shop in Nashville, TN mostly at Aldi, Kroger, or a local Latino market. XOXO -Monti
How would it be with no olives? I’m not a very big fan of them but the stew looks delicious! Is there a substitute you recommend or do you suggest adding some vinegar to get close to the briny addition the olives put in?
Everyone has their own way of making traditional recipes. I prefer this with bone-in chicken for a little extra flavor. Personally, I’ve never seen pollo guisao with chopped chicken. The chicken should cook whole in the guiso. You could sear the chicken in med high heat prior so the chicken retains moisture, deglaze the pan with the aromatics and other spices, then add the chicken back in with the tomato sauce and broth. Also, culantro or recao is the traditional herb in sofrito, cilantro is a good substitute but nothing beats the OG. This recipe is good, but a little twist would make it delicious. Buen provecho mis amores
I agree with all of your comments, Leila. This is not a traditional recipe. There are reasons for that, though. We have to keep our audience in mind when we develop recipes, and meet them where they are at. The ingredients need to be available at a budget grocery store. Ease is also important, as most of our audience doesn’t have much time to spend in the kitchen. We test recipes using the least amount of steps, tools, and ingredients you can use. That’s why we opted for boneless, skinless thighs, cilantro instead of recao etc. I wish we could find recao at Kroger!! And aji! But until those ingredients make it to the main stream, it’s bell peppers and cilantro. I’m assuming you’re Latina, and I’m so excited to have you here! xoxo -Monti
Si! Born and raised in PR. I understand completely, you’re doing a great service to your audience. I’m in FL so I have some Spanish markets nearby, it’s a little easier for me to find ingredients straight from the island. I grew up eating these foods so keeping it as close as possible to the way my abuela made it keeps her memory and the culture alive. Keep up the good work, and keep sharing the sazón!
Lo sabía! Hola Boricua! I used to live in Florida and miss the markets there very much. It’s so easy to find our ingredients. I’m jealous! My good friend Illyanna Maisonet just published a traditional Puerto Rican cook book (the first in many years) that you should check out. It’s called “Diasporican” and is available on Amazon. You’ll find the old school recipes there. Or try Wilo Benet’s book, I believe it’s called Puerto Rico True Flavors. He’s amazing and keeps it super classic. XOXO -Monti
Thank you for commenting; it helps other readers like me. I was wondering how to use bone in meat and now I do😁. Can you use a whole chicken, or should you stick to thighs?
Hi Danielle, you can absolutely use bone in thighs, just make sure you brown them really well, so you don’t have to increase the cooking time by too much. If you butcher a chicken you will need to double the recipe, as most chickens are three pounds, and this recipe only calls for one and a half pounds. XOXO -Monti
Can this be made in a cockpot instead? If so how would this be recommended?
Yes. Follow all the steps, searing in the crock pot. Keep it on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 2-3. The chicken is done when the internal temp reaches 165 degrees. xoxo -Monti
That is not how you make it I use very little liquid and let the chicken make its own juices
It is not. I have never had a pollo guisado with onions or garlic in it. Nor is the meat cut into tiny barely bite size pieces. We cook the whole pieces of chicken with the bone in. And it is pronounced poh-yoh gee-sow. We don’t pronounce the d.
Hey there! Really looking forward to trying this, it looks super yummy. However, I don’t have easy access to adobo seasoning, but I understand it’s a simple blend of spices – could you please provide a recipe for adobo seasoning that I could try at home?
Thanks!
Hi Sara! For a simple adobo, mix together: 3 Tablespoons Kosher Salt, 3 Tablespoons Onion Powder, 3 Tablespoons Garlic Powder, 1 Tablespoon Black Pepper, 1 Tablespoon Cumin, 1.5 Tablespoons Ground Coriander, 2 Tablespoons Ground oregano, 2 Tablespoons Turmeric.
You will have about a cup of Adobo. Use it as an all-purpose seasoning. Thanks for trying the recipe! XOXO -Monti