Ají de Gallina is one of Peru’s classic recipes. It’s a rich dish with pecan, chili and chicken. The best part is the sauce: rich, spicy and creamy. Which makes it perfect to combine with all sorts of veg. This plant-based version is as good as the original and it gives you the same warm satisfaction once you have it. Served on its own, this recipe is great as a side dish or part of a tapas or mezze menu; served with a side of rice or quinoa it becomes a whole meal.
Ingredients
1 small broccoli
2 green bell peppers
Sauce
2 red onions
2 garlic cloves
25 gr pecan nuts, pls extra for garnish
2 tablespoons ají amarillo (Peruvian yellow chili paste)
1 teaspoon ground cumin seeds
120 ml plant-based full milk (like a barista edition)
2 heaped tablespoons bread crumbs
375 ml vegetable stock
Salt
Pepper
Directions
- Peal and finely chop the onion and garlic. Roughly chop the pecan nuts.
- Heat a bit of oil in a frying pan and fry the onion and the garlic on medium to low heat until the onion softens.
- Add the chopped pecan, chili paste and cumin and stir-fry for 2 minutes.
- Puree the onion and pecan mixture with the milk and bread crumbs.
- Pour the sauce in a pot on medium heat and add the stock. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and leave to simmer and thicken a bit.
- Heat the oven at 220ºC. Cut the broccoli is small rosettes and the bell peppers in stripes. Roast them in the oven about 15 minutes.
- Serve the veg with the sauce and garnish with the extra pecan.
