Loaded with tomatoes and green olives, pollo guisado (Spanish for chicken stew) is a hearty, fall-off the bone braised chicken dish popular throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, and particularly in Puerto Rico. Almost every version starts with sofrito, a fragrant mixture of bell peppers, onions, garlic, and cilantro or culantro, finely chopped or blended into a paste. This recipe makes extra sofrito, so you can freeze it to jump-start future soups, stews, and more. (Read the essay behind this particular version from writer Jacqueline Woodson.)
The other powerhouse in our pollo guisado recipe is adobo seasoning. We like the Loisa brand, a combination of sea salt, garlic powder, turmeric, black pepper, and oregano, but any store-bought mix will work. For the chicken, we use skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs, but you could also use drumsticks. Avoid boneless chicken and white meat (skinless chicken breasts just can’t compare to the depth and richness of dark meat).
Often served with white rice or tostones (fried green plantains), pollo guisado tastes even better the next day. Garnish bowls with fresh cilantro and lime wedges.
For a beefier version, try carne guisada, a Tex-Mex beef stew with Puerto Rican roots. More of our best chicken recipes, right this way →
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What you’ll need
Loisa Organic Adobo Seasoning
$11 At Amazon
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Food Processor
$63 At Amazon
Dutch Oven
$133 $80 At Amazon
Tongs
$21 At Amazon
Ladle
$27 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
1 hour 30 minutes
Yield
6 servings
Ingredients
Sofrito
1
1
½
6
2
1
Stew and Assembly
4
1
1
1
8
1
1
4
1
1
2½
1
Preparation
Sofrito
Step 1
Pulse 1 medium green bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, coarsely chopped, 1 medium red bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, coarsely chopped, ½ small bunch cilantro, leaves with tender stems picked, 6 garlic cloves, 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, and 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a food processor until a coarse purée forms. (Makes about 2¼ cups.)
Do ahead: Sofrito can be made 3 days ahead. Transfer to an airtight container; cover and chill, or freeze up to 1 month.
Stew and Assembly
Step 2
Whisk 4 tsp. ground cumin, 1 Tbsp. powdered adobo seasoning, 1 tsp. ground turmeric, and 1 tsp. paprika in a small bowl. Sprinkle half of spice mixture all over 8 skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs (about 3 lb.).
Step 3
Heat 1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot over medium. Working in batches, arrange chicken, skin side down, in pot and cook, undisturbed, until skin is golden brown, 8–10 minutes. Turn over and cook until other side is browned, about 5 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate.
Step 4
Add 1 medium onion, finely chopped, and 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped, to pot and cook, stirring often, until onion is softened and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add 1 Tbsp. tomato paste and cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in ½ cup sofrito and remaining spice mixture and cook, stirring, until fragrant and mixture is slightly darkened, about 3 minutes. Pour in one 8-oz. can tomato sauce and 2½ cups low-sodium chicken broth; stir to combine, scraping up any browned bits stuck to bottom of pot.
Step 5
Return chicken pieces to pot, arranging skin side up, and bring stew to a simmer. Cover with a lid and cook, adjusting heat as needed to maintain a simmer, until chicken is cooked through, 25–30 minutes.
Step 6
Uncover pot and stir in 1 cup pitted manzanilla olives. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until stew is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Taste stew and season with kosher salt if needed.
Step 7
To serve, divide steamed rice among bowls and ladle stew over; top with cilantro leaves with tender stems. Serve with lime wedges.
Do ahead: Stew (without cilantro) can be made 3 days ahead. Let cool; cover and chill. Add cilantro just before serving.
Leave a Review
Reviews (7)
Back to TopFlavorful and easy. It also was a stunner on the plate. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that while it was delicious, I wasn't blown away by it. I would make it again, though.
Sarah
San Luis Obispo
3/14/2024
This was my first BA recipe and exceeded my expectations! The chicken was falling off the bone and the sauce was DELICIOUS. Had my friends try it and they also raved to me how good it was 😭. As a newbie in the kitchen, this was certainly way out of my comfort zone (i mostly cook eggs lol), but looking back, the recipe is quite straightforward. I had a couple problems. I 'm in Spain and couldn't find Adobo seasoning ANYWHERE, so I had to make it from scratch from a recipe I found on google. Very easy to make with simple, easy-to-find ingredients and now I have plenty for next time :) Second, I made the mistake of forgetting both tomato ingredients so I didn't have enough liquid in my pot to cover half of my chicken thighs. I compensated with an extra cup of chicken broth. I ended up with A LOT of soup, but omggggg it was seriously soooooo delicious. My friends told me to keep it that way and I think I'm gonna keep doing it to make it my own :) I might want to add some cornstarch next time to thicken it up a little bit next time. Next, I didn't have a big enough pot to cook the massive amount of chicken thighs I bought. I found that what you can do is cook what you can in the pot, and after the chicken is falling off the bone, serve them, and add in the uncooked chicken and let it simmer again for another 30 minute to cook those. Totally solved my problem! Also didn't add the olives cause I hate them 💗
Cielo
Barcelona, Spain
1/6/2024
Loved it! So much flavor! Definitely going to be one of my regulars
Raul
12/14/2023
This was sooo good. Made it the night before eating to let the flavors meld, but also because then all I had to do was slowly reheat it while I made rice and reheated pinto beans. I used freshly puréed canned tomato for the tomato sauce and canned sliced black olives because that’s what I had. Served it with the rice and beans, avocado, cotija cheese, sour cream and pickled jalapeños. It certainly WAS on the saucy side, but letting it reduce a bit and serving it with the rice was no biggie. Everyone who ate this dish loved it and there was more than one picky eater.
Judy
Boise, Idaho
12/9/2023
Great recipe. Great addition to my other carne and pollo recipes. I made my own adobo seasoning...easy to do and you'll have some later when you need it. Substituted tomato sauce with 8 oz of crushed tomatoes. Added a bit more texture to the dish along with the sofrito. Cut the chicken stock to 2 cups. (Didn't want too much liquid) Package of chicken thighs had 10, so in they went. No problems anywhere. Everyone loved it. Leftovers will be amazing.
Jody W
Georgia
12/7/2023
Hello!!! Although each house has its variations of this recipe, most households will usually cook this with cubanelle peppers instead of bell. Also, if you’re preparing a batch of sofrito paste, the long, large coriander leaves (“recao” or “culantro”) are a must.
Carene
Puerto Rico
12/7/2023
Store bought Adobo pales compared to home made. Here's a simple Adobo Seco recipe: - 6 tbs salt - 6 tbs granulated garlic[not garlic salt] - 4 tbs oregano[I use Oregano Entero] - 2tbs black pepper - 2 tbs turmeric - 2 tbs onion powder Mix ingredients and store in airtight container. The origin of spices can be difficult to trace and some of them may contain lead and/or pesticides. Therefore I buy as much as possible organic.
ManySummits
San Francisco, CA
12/6/2023