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    Home » Recipes » Main Dishes

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    Pollo Guisado (Dominican Chicken)

    En Español Recipe ↆ

    Now you can make pollo guisado dominican (braised chicken)--one of the most popular dishes in Dominican cuisine-- with this detailed recipe with easy-to-follow video. This is a treat you cannot miss.

    JUMP TO: show ↓
    1. Why we ❤️ it
    2. An inexpensive food
    3. About our recipe
    4. Recipe

    Why we ❤️ it

    All over Latin America pollo guisado is a staple at mealtime. From Colombian to Puerto Rican pollo guisado they all have their fans. And we Dominicans love our own braised Dominican chicken every bit as much!

    Pollo guisado is served daily in millions of Dominican homes, after all, it is one of the cornerstones of La Bandera Dominicana, the traditional Dominican lunch meal. To be exact, Res Guisada can take that place too, but chicken is more inexpensive, faster to cook, and more popular.

    An inexpensive food

    Let's return to the "inexpensive" part...

    What's with all those bits in pollo guisado dominicano?

    How many times have I heard a foreigner who, between laughter and confused looks, fails to comprehend why a lot of Dominicans eat chicken feet, giblets, and other parts of the chicken that are discarded in other countries?

    The truth is that it is all a matter of culture (and, to a certain extent, the person's means), many a Dominican has to squeeze every penny out of their grocery budget. Every little bit counts, and so the whole chicken (not whole, technically) goes into the pot.

    Here from our perspective, removed from the reality of the farmer of yesteryear, or the poor of today, we're in no position to judge anyone's culinary choice. And, frankly, all those bits are tasty. But if you are amongst the blessed who can afford to pick their chicken parts, go with breasts, or thighs. That's also fine.

    About our recipe

    Each Dominican home, further, each Dominican cook has their own version of this dish. The changes may be imperceptible to some, but each will swear by their own "best chicken recipe". As is the case for most of our recipes, mine is inspired by my own family traditions and my taste. While this may not taste exactly like your mom's or grandma's braised chicken, you'll find this one may become a new favorite. Or feel free to change it, perhaps you'll find just the thing that makes yours as good as grandma's Pollo Guisado.

    Of all the ways you can cook chicken, this tender, flavorful, fall-off-the-bone Dominican Pollo Guisado is the indisputable favorite in this country.

    Buen provecho!

    Tia Clara

    Recipe

    Serve
    Keep screen on while cooking

    [Recipe + Video] Pollo Guisado (Dominican Chicken)

    By: Clara Gonzalez
    Pollo Guisado - Recipe & Video (Braised Chicken): one of the most popular dishes in Dominican cuisine. Easy to prepare and very rich this is a treat you cannot miss.
    4.98 from 44 votes
    Save for Later Send by Email Print Recipe
    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 25 mins
    Total Time 40 mins
    Course Dinner, Lunch
    Cuisine Dominican, Latino
    Servings 6 servings
    Calories 242 kcal

    Ingredients

    • 2 lbs chicken, [0.9 kg], cut into small pieces
    • Juice of 1 lime
    • ½ teaspoon oregano (dry, ground)
    • 1 small red onion, stalks cut into slices
    • ½ cup chopped celery, (optional)
    • 1 teaspoon salt, (more may be necessary)
    • ½ teaspoon mashed garlic
    • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
    • 1 teaspoon sugar (white, granulated)
    • 2 cup water
    • 2 green bell, or cubanela (cubanelle) peppers
    • 4 plum tomato, cut into quarters
    • ¼ cup pitted green olives, (optional)
    • 1 cup tomato sauce
    • 1 bunch cilantro
    • ¼ teaspoon pepper (freshly-cracked, or ground)

    Instructions
     

    • Prep chicken
      Prep chicken: Cut the chicken into small pieces and place in a bowl that has a lid. Season the chicken pieces with the lime juice.
    • Season chicken
      Season chicken: Mix the chicken, oregano, onion, celery, salt, and garlic. Marinate for 30 minutes.
    • Brown chicken
      Brown chicken: In a pot heat the oil over medium heat, add sugar, and wait until it browns.
      Add the chicken (reserve all the other things in the marinade for use in a later step) and cook and stir until the meat is light brown.
    • Braise: Add 2 tablespoons of water. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes, stirring and adding water by the tablespoon as it becomes necessary to prevent it from burning.
    • Add vegetables
      Add vegetables: Stir in the vegetables that you had set aside from marinating the chicken, plus cubanelle pepper, tomatoes, and olives. Cover, and simmer until the vegetables are cooked through, adding water by the tablespoon and stirring as it becomes necessary.
    • Make sauce
      Make sauce: Add the tomato sauce and half a cup of water, simmer over low heat to produce a light sauce. The vegetables will be very soft, the sauce a bit thick, and the chicken fall-off-the-bone tender.
      Add fresh cilantro. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
    • Serve
      Serve: Serve with arroz blanco, a side dish (or salad), and beans. It also goes great with moro de habichuelas (Dominican rice and beans).

    Tips and Notes

    Braising is sometimes also known as pot roasting. In this case, the chicken has to be cooked with the minimum of liquid to prevent it from sticking to the pot and burning. It's a slow-heat process.
    For people on keto, or low-carb diets, skip the sugar, although this is quite low in carbs as is, the sugar is only added for color.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 242kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 15gFat: 17gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 54mgSodium: 751mgPotassium: 488mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 830IUVitamin C: 43.2mgCalcium: 32mgIron: 1.4mg

    Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutritional information.

    READERS SEARCHED FOR braised, chicken, guisado, pollo
    More recipes with: chicken, meat, poultry
    Edited: Sep 17, 2020 | Publish: Apr 4, 2012

    ¡Hola! I am Tía Clara, your host. Thanks for visiting.
    - Any questions or comments about this?
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    102 Comments
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    Maria Licea
    April 25, 2020 9:21 PM

    We loved it. I didn't put the tomato sauce. & I had to substitute the celery with carrots. So fast all recipes I've tried from here are easy tip follow.5 stars

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    Dash
    June 11, 2013 12:54 AM

    The reason Dominicans and other Latin Americans use every part of the animal is because those scraps were given to enslaved Africans by the European colonizers. This practice is found all over the Americas and is easily researchable. These parts were undesired and the Africans that were in the Dominican… Read more »

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    Laura
    July 19, 2016 11:25 AM

    Tried this recipe with my husband.. He loved it! Added my own twists but used all your ingredients and instructions! It was delicious. Great details, thanks!

    15
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    Barbara Pottle
    September 7, 2011 2:33 PM

    I have been to the Republica Dominicana 6 times over the past 7 years as a missionary.We are building a hospital in Halto Neuvo.I LOVE the R.D. and its people!!! Were we stay is a little lady who makes Pollo Guisado every time we go .Now I can make it.… Read more »

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