Puerto Rican Stewed Chicken (Pollo Guisado) Recipe Has So Much Flavor (High Fiber, High Protein) by Elisa Schmitz
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I've been thinking a lot about Puerto Rico lately. Yes, Bad Bunny has brought a lot of attention to Puerto Rico, which has been fun to see. But to me, it's a bit more personal. My mom (mi madre) is from a small town in Puerto Rico and our family lived there when I was little. I'm grateful to have spent a lot of time on La Isla del Encanto (the island of enchantment) with family and, in typical Puerto Rican style, many of my best memories are of being in the kitchen cooking – and eating – delicious Puerto Rican food. It seemed like there was always something incredibly flavorful simmering on the stove, and the smell alone would make my mouth water.
One of my favorite dishes was stewed chicken, or pollo guisado. Puerto Rican chicken stew has a wonderfully distinct flavor thanks to sofrito – a blend of onions, garlic, peppers and cilantro – and sazon – a blend of coriander, garlic powder, achiote, cumin and oregano. These two ingredients give this stewed chicken recipe so much flavor! You can make your own versions of sofrito and sazon at home or buy them pre-made online or in stores that carry Latin foods. Check out how to make your own sofrito (and check out the health benefits of sofrito).
The other day, I was thinking about my mom's recipe for pollo guisado. I remember her telling me that one of the secrets to success with this stewed chicken recipe (and other Puerto Rican recipes) was to include potatoes. "The potatoes thicken the sauce," she told me. She wasn't wrong and, to this day, when cooking Puerto Rican recipes that need a serious sauce, I always include potatoes. The sauce turns out so thick and rich that I'm happy just dunking some bread into it. But more often than not, I serve this stew over rice to soak up the savory sauce. Plus, this nutritious stew recipe is high in protein and high in fiber.
To make this zesty Puerto Rican stew, here are the gluten-free ingredients you'll need to gather: extra virgin olive oil, chicken thighs, onion, green bell pepper, potatoes, sofrito, minced garlic, sazon, adobo seasoning, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, kidney beans and green olives. First, you sear the chicken then remove it to a plate. Next, you sauté the onions, green peppers and potatoes. Add the rest of the ingredients (including the chicken) and simmer until chicken is tender and your kitchen smells like Puerto Rico.
Serve this scrumptious pollo guisado for dinner on its own or over rice to soak up the yummy sauce. We love it served with fresh avocado slices. Yum!
Cuisine: Puerto Rican
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (divided)
- 2 pounds chicken thighs (bone-in or boneless/skinless)
- 1 cup onion, diced
- 1 cup green bell pepper, diced
- 3 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
- 3/4 cup sofrito
- 2 tablespoons sazon seasoning
- 1 tablespoon adobo seasoning
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 8 ounces (1 can) tomato sauce
- 30 ounces (2 cans) diced tomatoes (with liquid)
- 30 ounces (2 cans) dark red kidney beans (with liquid)
- 6 ounces green olives, pitted
Here's how to make it:
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In a large soup pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat, add half the olive oil and the seasoned chicken. Sear chicken on both sides then remove to a plate.
- In the same pot over medium heat, add the remaining olive oil along with the onions, peppers and potatoes. Stir to combine and sauté until vegetables just start to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the sofrito, sazon, adobo and garlic. Stir to combine.
- Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes and kidney beans. Stir to combine.
- Add the chicken and the olives and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low and simmer until all is cooked through and chicken is tender, about 30 minutes. (Chicken is done when it reaches 165 degrees F on a food thermometer.)
- Serve on its own or over rice. Garnish with avocado slices, if desired. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Recipe cooking times, nutritional information and servings are approximate and provided for your convenience. However, 30Seconds is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe, nor may you have the same results because of variations in ingredients, temperatures, altitude, errors, omissions or cooking/baking abilities. Any nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and it is up to the individual to ascertain accuracy. To ensure image quality, we may occasionally use stock photography.
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