Gallina de Aji

Nearly two decades ago, I became aquainted with a Peruvian woman living in Southern California.  One of her signature dishes, Gallina de Aji sent my taste buds to places they had never been before. Aji Amarillo is a small Peruvian chile pepper that is yellow when fresh, but turns to shades of orange as it ages.  In Gallina de Aji, you use the fresh yellow chiles if you have access to them.  There is a unique grassy and very spicy taste to them. On a trip to Phoenix recently, I found a mega international food store that had a paste made from the chiles.  If you have such a store, you might be able to find the chiles whole, or the paste. I don't have em here in New Mexico, but as I write this I am wondering why the heck I haven't ordered seeds to grow my own...perhaps next spring I will. I live at 7500 feet elevation...Peru starts at 7700 feet.  Maybe I will get lucky.  For now, I have found a pretty good substitute when I make this dish.  It's not a hard dish to put together and I guarantee you that the smells that waft through your kitchen will be a wonderful treat for your senses.  My friend uses Jalapeno's when she is out of Aji Chile Peppers but I found that hot New Mexico green chile powder is closer in flavor to Aji Chile.  If you don't do well with chiles, I have successfully made this without the spice, so just eliminate the chiles in the recipe or use a minimal proportion to taste.  Before I begin the dish I make sure to put on a pot of Basmati rice, which partners so well with it.  Enjoy the experience of making Gallina de Aji...it sort of reminds me of scenes from Like Water for Chocolate...you'll see what I mean if you are familiar with the ultimate foodie flick. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY4lDCaSiJ4&feature=related (this is like the most culinary - sensual scenes in the movie.)

Gallina de Aji

 4 chicken breasts - finely shredded

1 large red onion - finely chopped

6 large cloves of garlic - finely chopped

3/4 cup of walnuts - finely chopped

1 cup shredded parmisano reggiano

1 spicy fresh jalapeno - finely chopped or 1 tbsp hot new mexico green chile powder

1 tbsp curry powder

olive oil

bay leaves

celery

yellow onion

black pepper corns

salt and pepper to taste

place the chicken breasts into a pot of water with 2 bay leaves, a stalk of celery, half a yellow onion and 1/8 tsp of black pepper corns.  Cook the chicken over medium heat.  Make sure to use a pretty good sized pot with at least 5 cups of water.  Start the chicken first because you will be using the stock being created in the pot to make the gallina de aji.

Use a pot such as a dutch over to begin making the main dish.  To save prep time, I use a pampered chef brand chopper...its quick and the pampered chef chopper has wings that open up afterwards for thorough and easy cleaning...most of the choppers out there don't have this ability so food can get lodged up inside where you can't get to it...yuk.

Finely chop your onion, garlic, jalapeno(if using) & walnuts

Shred the Parmisiano Reggiano

In the dutch oven, over medium heat add three tablespoons of a good olive oil to the pot and saute the red onion  for 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes.  Make sure to keep stirring the onion garlic mixture so the garlic doesn't burn on the bottom of the pot.  Now add the curry powder, the finely chopped jalapeno or the chile powder and the walnuts and mix thoroughly.  Ladle in two ladles of the stock the chicken is cooking in.  Make sure you don't ladle in any of the pepper corns.  Stir the mixture and lower the heat to just above a simmer.  As the liquid evaporates, ladle in more stock. 

finely shred the chicken breasts.  I add portions to the pot as I go so the chicken won't dry out.  When all the chicken is added stir in the parmisiano reggiano and salt and pepper to taste.  Remember that the cheese is salty so adjust salt accordingly.  Continue to add stock to mixture and cover and simmer for 15 minutes.  Just before serving taste because as you add the stock the salt gets diluted...you will probably have to add more. 

Enjoy over the Basmati Rice with a good robust red wine.  This dish is enough on it's own, but a green salad goes well with the Gallina de Aji.

Vegetarian version: Use vegetable broth and cubed firm tofu instead.

bon appetit

robert