The Crowe household has been on a serious kick lately of Peruvian chicken. We first had it when we lived in Hoboken, NJ at one of our favorite local restaurants. After that we were hooked.
4 years later we moved to Charlotte, NC and unfortunately in the area we live there just wasn’t place like that where we could find that amazing Peruvian chicken. We went to town on making our own and it is so easy!
A super flavorful marinade and a little time is all you need. I love to make this the night before and let the chicken soak in it all night. The chicken comes out super tender, juicy and is full of so much flavor.
You will need a couple specialty ingredients. I found them at our local international food store, but you can also find them online. They are:
- Huacatay Paste (Black mint paste)
- Aji Amarillo Paste (Yellow hot pepper paste)
Both of these together really turn up the flavor of the chicken! If you have to choose just one to get, definitely go with the pepper paste. It is amazing and I use it in a lot of other dishes! It goes in the cilantro green sauce we will be making too!
Let’s talk chicken.
My husband and I have done this with a whole chicken we roasted in the oven and it was delicious! However, our favorite way is to grab some chicken quarters and grill them. The skin gets a little charred and crispy while the chicken stays super moist. It’s the best of both worlds!
Now for the cilantro green sauce. This sauce is incredible and this sauce is NOT my recipe. A long time ago I tried out Rachel Farnsworth’s cilantro green sauce recipe and it is perfection. There is no point in changing it. So I’m giving her full credit here and it is the best! Go check out her blog, The Stay at Home Chef. She has amazing recipes on her blog that are easy to make! Back to the sauce… I don’t eat the chicken without it. It’s creamy, a little spicy and packs a punch of flavor. It is great over the chicken and wonderful to dip some yuca fries in! (We always make yuca with this dish as well). All you need is a blender or food processor to whip it up and it can last in the fridge for a week.
On to the recipe! I hope you enjoy this chicken as much as we do.
-Melissa
Peruvian Chicken with Cilantro Green Sauce
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade
- 4 chicken quarters (or one whole chicken)
- 3 limes juiced
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1½ TBSP Aji Amarillo Paste
- 2 tsp Huacatay Paste
- 5 garlic cloves minced
- 1½ TBSP ground cumin
- 1 TBSP smoked paprika
- 1½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Rachel Farnsworth's Cilantro Green Sauce
- 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 jalapeño
- 1 TBSP Aji Amarillo Paste
- 2 TBSP grated cotija cheese (or parmesan)
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 TBSP fresh lime juice
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ⅛ tsp salt
Instructions
Peruvian Chicken
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Add all of the marinade ingredients into a medium sized bowl and whisk together well. Pour over the chicken and let marinade for at least 6 hours, but overnight is best.
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Preheat a grill to medium high heat. Meanwhile, let the chicken come to room temperature.
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Grill the chicken over medium high heat flipping once for about 10 minutes until a crust forms. Then lower the temperature to medium low and let the chicken cook until done. About 20 more minutes or until an instant read thermometer reads 165 degrees. Take off and let the chicken rest for about 10 minutes. Serve up and enjoy!
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If doing a whole chicken in the oven: Preheat oven to 450 degrees and cook the chicken in a roasting pan for 20 minutes. Drop the temperature down to 350 degress and let the chicken continue to cook for another 40-45 minutes or until the chicken is done and instant read thermometer reads 165 degrees. Take out and let rest for 10 minutes then carve up and enjoy!
Cilantro Green Sauce
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Add all of the ingredients into a high speed blender or food processor and blend until smooth, thick and creamy. Store in an airtight jar in the fridge for up to a week.
If you like this recipe, be sure to check out my other favorite chicken recipes on the blog!
Sage Fried Chicken and Waffles
