Peruvian Chicken (Pollo a la Brasa) with Peruvian Green Sauce (Aji Verde) and Avocado Tomato Cucumber Salad. Can be made in 40 minutes- perfect for weeknights! Vegan adaptable!
Row row row your boat, gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream.~
While in Seattle we lunched at a little Peruvian restaurant and ordered Pollo a la Brasa, aka, Peruvian Chicken. It came with an addicting spicy green sauce and a simple side salad, and instantly I was hooked.
Instead of roasting a whole chicken in the traditional way I used boneless, skinless breast and thighs and grilled them instead of firing up the oven- making the cooking process faster, cooler (during the summer months) and without the skin, a bit lighter and healthier.
For mixed households, vegans can substitute portobellos for the chicken using the same flavorful marinade- it’s very easy to grill up both the chicken and portobellos.
Watch how to make Peruvian Chicken!
And be sure to make this fresh Avocado-Cucumber and Tomato Salad – it’s so simple and tasty and if you want, serve it all up with rice. If you are a fast chopper and a multitasker, the whole meal can be made in about 35-40 minutes. Seriously!
On the home-front: We’ve been taking it easy. Yes catering some weddings, but really not as many as previous years. I’m loving my life- I can’t remember a summer where time felt so plentiful. It’s really a luxurious feeling. I’m not sure if I’ve told you this, but this will be our last year catering.
The plan is to travel part of the year and focus on this blog. Yes, surprisingly blogging is a “business”, and one that doesn’t cause as much stress anxiety. I’m sitting here typing in my PJ’s! For the last 22 years, I’ve led a pretty stress-filled life (my choice) with the restaurant, then with the catering business- so anyways- I’m so excited to slow down, take care of myself and get to do more of what I love!
Look how clean and healthy this Peruvian Chicken looks! Especially if you go light on the green sauce, which I’ll admit, is difficult to do.
Mildly spicy, citrusy, earthy the Peruvian chicken is flavorful and juicy, and the portobellos are just as tasty! This whole meal could be easily be made vegan, so be sure to look at the recipe notes.
The quick easy peruvian marinade is made with olive oil, garlic, spices and lime juice.
Marinate the Peruvian chicken while the grill heats up. Or marinate overnight for even more flavor! Here I’m using boneless skin-less thighs, but breasts would work too, as well as bone-in, skin-on chicken. Keep in mind that boneless breasts cook the fastest and are the leanest, not including these portobello mushrooms.
Portobellos can be sliced or grilled whole. Be sure to brush the marinade on lightly, because mushrooms are porous can actually soak up too much, if you are not careful.
While the grill heats up, whip up the Spicy Peruvian Green Sauce in the blender.
As the chicken and portobellos grill, make the Avocado Tomato Cucumber salad.
Avocados and cucumber are diced, and cherry tomatoes are halved. Then it’s simply drizzled with olive oil, lime juice and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Serve the Peruvian Chicken with rice for a heartier meal.
Serve the Peruvian Chicken with Green Sauce separately or build bowls.
Love hearing your feedback and comments….let us know how you like it, or how you adapted it….and remember to tag your creations #feastingathome on instagram so I can see what you are making!
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Peruvian Chicken with Spicy Peruvian Green Sauce
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 20
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 4-6
- Category: Main
- Method: Adaptable
- Cuisine: South American
Description
A simple recipe for Peruvian Chicken with spicy Peruvian Green Sauce is bursting with flavor and can be made with either chicken or portobellos (a tasty vegetarian option) or both for mixed households. Served with Spicy Cilantro Sauce, Avocado Cucumber & Tomato Salad and optional rice, these can be made into individual Bowls, or served separately.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ –2 pounds chicken (thigh or breast, boneless, skinless- see notes) Or substitute portobellos!
Marinade:
- 4 garlic cloves- finely minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 teaspoons honey, agave or sugar
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 2 teaspoons paprika or smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano ( or 1 tablespoon fresh) or sub thyme or marjoram
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce ( optional)
Peruvian Green Sauce (Aji Verde) :
- ½ cup sour cream or mayo (see notes for vegan option)
- ½ jalapeño (use less for less spicy)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 cup chopped cilantro- thin stems ok.
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- a squeeze of lime ( 1 tablespoon, save other half for salad)
Avocado Cucumber Tomato Salad
- 2 cups diced or sliced English or Turkish cucumber
- 1 large perfectly ripe avocado, diced
- handful cherry tomatoes ( yellow and red are nice )
- cilantro leaves for garnishing
- olive oil for drizzling
- generous, 5 finger pinch kosher salt
- squeeze of lime
Optional Bowl Additions- cooked Cilantro Lime Rice or Mexican Pinto Beans…. or both.
Instructions
- Preheat grill to medium-high.
- If making rice, start this now on the stove.
- Make the marinade in a small bowl. Using a garlic press, finely mince the garlic and place it in the bowl. Add oil, lime juice, honey, cumin, paprika, coriander, oregano and salt and optional soy sauce. Stir. Toss it with the chicken in a bowl, coating all sides well, and/ or brush it onto the portobellos. Marinate while the grill heats up or overnight for more flavor. (The portobellos will soak up the marinade so if marinating overnight go lightly, reapply before grilling.)
- Make Peruvian Green Sauce by placing all the ingredients in a blender and blending until relatively smooth, scraping down the sides if necessary.
- When the grill is hot, grill the chicken and/ or portobellos, searing both sides well ( using a metal spatula to flip) then turn the heat down or move to a cooler side of the grill to allow the chicken to cook through. Portobellos will cook faster, so plate and cover with foil to keep warm.
- Make the salad by placing the diced cucumber in a wide shallow bowl. Add avocado, spacing it out evenly. Add a few cherry tomato halves. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and drizzle lightly with olive oil. Squeeze with lime juice. Garnish with cilantro leaves.
- Serve with the Cilantro Lime Rice. If making bowls, place ¾ cup rice on the bottom of the bowl, add sliced chicken or portobellos to one side, avocado salad on the other side and drizzle with the cilantro sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
Feel free to use bone-in, skin-on chicken, although cooking time will increase on the grill. Instead of grilling you can also roast in the oven at 400F, or pan-sear, then finish in the oven. Traditionally, in Peru, a whole chicken is marinated then roasted in the oven, but to save time here, I used boneless, skinless thighs, and breast would work just as well.
A note on Peruvian Green Sauce ( Aji Verde): Mayo is traditional. I prefer sour cream, or a blend of sour cream and mayo.
***This can easily be made vegan by subbing vegan mayo, or instead of mayo, using 1/4 cup raw cashews and 1/4 cup water, with a tablespoon of lime juice and upping the salt to 1/2 teaspoon, blending in a high-powered blender. If your blender is not “high-powered” soak the cashews for 4 hours first, so they soften.
Keywords: Peruvian Chicken, Peruvian Chicken Recipe, Grilled peruvian chicken, Peruvian Green Sauce, peruvian green sauce recipe
I have made this recipe on multiple occasions. My husband and I love the peruvian sauce. My 12-yr. old son lives the chicken, as he is a no condiments/sauce kinda kid. In regards to the delicious sauce, I will share that I use greek yogurt in place of sour cream and highly recommend using an immersion blender. When I tried to whip it up in our standard blender, there was not enough sauce to get to the blades. Had to scrape it out and transfer to a container for the immersion blender. The salad is the bomb too!
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This is the 3rd time I’ve made this. This time for 7 people and they LOVED it! Made the salad, sauce and rice too. Awesome, awesome recipes!
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This was so good,going to be making this regularly.
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After learning that my favorite Peruvian restaurant was shuttered due to Covid, and I could not take my boyfriend there to celebrate his birthday, I made this at home, and it was a huge hit. My three school age children loved it too! Thank you so much for helping me prepare a birthday feast for him!
★★★★★
Found this recipe on Pinterest and took a chance. So glad I did!! It is so delicious!! It’s now the most requested meal in our house.
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Awesome! Great to hear! 🙌
Amazing recipe!! My family loves the chicken and the green sauce is mouthwatering.
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Tried this recipe for my son’s birthday. I Cooked the chicken over a charcoal grill (with lots of grilled potato). Luckily I made a double batch of the Peruvian Green Sauce. My whole family absolutely loved it – and I now regularly make this. Such a beautiful flavour. It is my favourite recipe to serve to friends and family at gatherings. It also goes great served on a soft taco. Thanks so much for my favourite recipe.
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Wish I could send a picture of the finished product. It was amazing! We used whole coriander seeds and then used a mortar and pestle to grind them so they were very coarsely ground. I think that was a good call but haven’t done it another way yet 🙂
We also put some fresh ramps on the grill and put those with the chicken. Also put the sauce (I used sour cream and a couple of tbs of bulgarian yogurt to make it a dressing) on some arugula as a side. So so good! This one’s a keeper!!
★★★★★
Sounds wonderful!
Absolutely delicious! I used 1 lb of chicken breast and 1 lb of portobello mushroom caps. Marinated the chicken for 2 hours. It was deliciously tender. Served it with your cilantro lime rice recipe that I modified and made in the instant pot. It was perfect!
★★★★★
This was delicious!
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Our family has recently fallen in love with this dish! It is soooo delicious.
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Hi,
Can I do this with skin on bone in thighs and legs? If so, would the marinade time be the same? Thanks! Tammy
Yes, or feel free to marinate longer.