Asopao (Puerto Rican stew with quinoa)

Once upon a time, we went to a friend’s birthday dinner. And at that birthday dinner, the most delicious Puerto Rican “stew” was served. It was love at first taste! I insisted that my friend share this recipe with me and she was generous enough to send it my way. And our taste buds all lived happily ever after.

Seriously. This recipe has become a favorite in our family. It is one of our staples! Every one of my kids devours it and requests it when I’ve gone too long without making it. I would say I put it on the menu almost every month. It’s that good.

It’s also healthy, which is always a plus in my book. The traditional version of asopa uses rice, and I’ve made it with rice before, but I substituted the rice with quinoa and love it even more. Quinoa is higher in protein and dietary fiber, and I’m always struggling to get one of my picky eaters to increase her protein, so quinoa is a perfect substitute.

I also made this recipe for my sister-in-law, whose family comes from the Dominican Republic, and she gave it two thumbs up. She said it was very similar to a recipe her family makes. So you know this recipe is legit.

Let’s get cooking. To start with, you need bone-in chicken parts. You could probably do it with boneless chicken, but I’ve never done it that way and the cook time will differ if you choose to go boneless. Bone-in gives you more flavor and health benefits anyway, so I would say just stick with the recipe 😉 Normally, I like to do a variety of bone-in chicken thighs with drumsticks, but they were out of bone-in thighs and variety packs at the grocery store this week, so drumsticks it is.

The recipe calls for 6-8 pieces of chicken, but I have found that you can easily add more chicken, especially if you are using drumsticks. My kids love this meal and I love having leftovers to pack in their thermos for lunch the next day, so I always add extra chicken. To be honest, I add a little extra quinoa as well. I’ve learned that you really don’t have to be accurate on the measurements with this meal!

Here’s your first set of ingredients that you will need.

The first step is to prepare your chicken. You will want to do this earlier in the day, or at least half an hour before you are ready to get cooking, because you want your meat to marinate a little. You can even do it the night before and let it marinate in the fridge overnight. Start by rinsing the chicken parts and peeling off the skin. I love a good chicken skin, but trust me, you don’t want the skin for this recipe. Toss it aside. Put your peeled chicken in a Ziploc bag.

Next, chop up your cilantro. Then, add the cilantro, oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper to the bag and seal the bag. Just a quick note about the oil: I use avocado oil because it is safe at high temps. Olive oil really should only be used cold and vegetable oils aren’t good for you. I’m not gonna tell you what kind of oil to use, but if you want to be healthy, try avocado oil!

Smoosh it around with your hands outside the bag, coating all of the pieces with your marinade. Don’t mind the skin in this picture; I realized after the fact that I forgot to peel the skins off the chicken and then had to go back and take it off. Ugh. Do it right the first time, it’s much easier!

Here is your second set of ingredients:

You can prep these ingredients while your chicken is marinating, or just before you are ready to get cooking. You will want to chop up the bell pepper, onion and ham into small pieces. I dice it all pretty small so that my kids can’t recognize any of it or pick it out. Plus I think it gives the overall meal a good texture when it’s diced small.

Now you’re ready to get cooking! Add 1 TB of oil to a large pan. I use a tall stock pan because I usually increase the recipe a bit and I don’t want anything spilling over. Add your paprika to the oil and cook for just a minute.

Add your bell pepper, onion and ham and saute it for about 5 minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

Add your capers, olives, vinegar and tomato sauce and give it all a good mix.

Add the chicken to the pot and give it a good stir, covering the chicken in the sauce. Put the lid on your pot and let the chicken cook for about 25 minutes, or until it is no longer pink in the middle. Make sure to flip the chicken halfway through your cook time.

Once your chicken is cooked through, remove the lid and add chicken broth and quinoa. Mix thoroughly and cook for about 12-15 more minutes, or until the quinoa is done.

And that’s it! Once the quinoa (or rice) is cooked, your asopao is done! Doesn’t it look yummy?

I usually let mine set on the stove for a few minutes before serving so that it’s not quite a soup mixture. The longer it sits, the more the quinoa absorbs the broth. The day after is amazing! I almost like it left-over more than I like it fresh just because it thickens up.

You can also scrape the chicken off the bone once it’s all done. I do that when I store the left overs so that it’s easier to pack in my kid’s thermoses.

Give this recipe a try, and let me know in the comments how you like it!

Print Recipe

Asopao (Puerto Rican stew with quinoa)

Course

Main Dish

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

40 minutes

Servings

servings

Ingredients

• 6-8 chicken parts, bone-in
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. pepper
• 2-3 TB cilantro finely chopped
• 3 TB avocado oil (or oil of your choice)
• 1 tsp. paprika
• 2 oz. cooked ham, finely diced
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 1 small green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 TB white vinegar
• 6-8 oz. tomato sauce
• 1 TB capers
• 1/2 cup spanish olives (green with pimento), sliced or chopped
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup quinoa (may substitute rice)

Course Main Dish Prep Time 20 minutes Cook Time 40 minutes Servings servings Ingredients 6-8 chicken parts, bone-in 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. dried oregano 1/2 tsp. pepper 2-3 TB cilantro finely chopped 3 TB avocado oil (or oil of your choice) 1 tsp. paprika 2 oz. cooked ham, finely diced 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 small green bell pepper, finely chopped 1 TB white vinegar 6-8 oz. tomato sauce 1 TB capers 1/2 cup spanish olives (green with pimento), sliced or chopped 3 cups chicken broth 1 cup quinoa (may substitute rice)

Instructions

1. First, prepare your chicken either 1/2 hour before cooking or overnight. Start by rinsing the chicken parts and peeling off the skin. Put your skinless chicken in a Ziploc bag.
2. Next, chop up your cilantro. Then, add the cilantro, 2 TB oil, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper to the bag and seal the bag. Rub the mixture over the chicken by smooshing the outside of the bag.
3. While the chicken is marinating, prepare your other ingredients. Chop up your onion, bell pepper and ham and set aside for a minute.
4. Saute your paprika in remaining 1 TB oil for about 30 seconds. Then add onion, bell pepper and ham. Saute for about 5 minutes or until the onion is translucent.
5. Add vinegar, tomato sauce, capers and olives. Mix well. Cook for 2 more minutes.
6. Add the chicken parts, turning to coat them in the sauce. Cover the pot and cook until the chicken is no longer pink inside, about 25 minutes. Turn the chicken halfway through cooking to even both sides.
7. Remove the lid and add chicken broth and quinoa (or rice), mixing well. Bring the stew to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer until the quinoa is done; about 15 minutes.
8. Let it sit for just a few minutes before serving. You can scrape the chicken off the bone, or serve with the bone in. Enjoy!

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