Fricase de Pollo is a flavorful chicken stew from Cuba where chicken is slowly braised in wine with plenty of vegetables. This Cuban comfort food will warm you from the inside out.
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Fricase de Pollo is a traditional Cuban dish that belongs in your meal rotation.
It is warm, filling, full of protein and veggies, and can be served in several different ways.
What really gives this dish its unique flavor is the cooking method behind it. Fricassee is actually the name of a cooking technique. It starts with browning or sauteeing meat and then braising low and slow to let all the juices from the meat simmer and add incredible flavor to the dish.
Fricase de Pollo is braised with a dry white wine, as well as a citrusy marinade, which compliments the meat and vegetables perfectly. It is finished with potatoes, carrots and Spanish olives which give the dish another layer of flavor and make it filling and satisfying.
It is truly a dish full of complex flavors that will leave you craving more!
Why Make This Recipe
- Incredible Flavor: This dish has so many layers of flavor from the citrus marinade, the tender chicken, peppers and onions as well as carrots, potatoes and olives. Every bite is a new explosion of flavor!
- Versatile Meal: Fricase de Pollo is a complete meal on its own or it can be served with rice or a nice crusty bread. The flavors only intensify the next day making it a great meal for leftovers too!
- Taste of Cuba: This Fricase de Pollo recipe is the ultimate comfort food. It will leave you feeling full and warm!
Recipe Origin
Fricase de Pollo has roots that go back to France, where the cooking technique originated. It was brought to the Caribbean by Spanish and French settlers.
From there the locals infused the dish with their own local flare, adding citrus, plenty of spices and Spanish olives.
Cuban cuisine, like many dishes in the Caribbean, contains inspiration from Puerto Rico, Spanish, African and French influences. Fricase de Pollo is no exception.
Today Fricase de Pollo is a Cuban household favorite. It is full of comforting flavors and hearty enough to feed a family.
What Do You Need to Make This Recipe?
Ingredients
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
- Chicken: For the most authentic flavor, I prefer bone-in, skinless chicken drums and thighs but you could make this with boneless meat or even chicken breast. I prefer dark meat chicken
- Adobo: Adobo seasoning is a paste or marinade used in many Mexican dishes. You may be able to find it in your grocery store’s Hispanic or Latino section.
- Orange: You want fresh orange juice for this marinade if possible. Fresh juice is a bit more sour and you want sour orange juice for the best flavor.
- Limes: Again, choose fresh for the best results
- Bell Peppers: I like to use one red pepper and one green pepper
- Sazon packet: Sazon is a common seasoning for Puerto Rican dishes. It contains coriander, cumin, garlic powder and oregano
- Dry White Wine: Choose a wine that you enjoy drinking as this is the base of flavor for the dish. If you prefer not to use wine, use a high-quality chicken broth or chicken stock.
- Tomato Sauce: You can also use tomato paste and add a little extra liquid. This is important for the tomato-based sauce
- Russet Potatoes: You don’t need very much potato for this recipe. Just a little bit really helps thicken the sauce
- Spanish Olives: These green olives add a unique flavor to the dish
- Chicken Stock: More or less as necessary
Tools
- Large Bowl
- Large pot or large dutch oven
How to Make This Recipe
Step One: Prepare the chicken
Season the chicken generously with salt, pepper, and adobo. Then in a bowl, add the chicken along with the minced garlic, orange juice, and lime juice. Make sure the chicken is surrounded by the juices. Cover and marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes but up to 24 hours.
Once the chicken is done marinating, drizzle the olive oil in a Dutch oven and allow it to warm.
Add the chicken into the skillet, reserve marinade to add back in later, and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side until each side is browned. After a few minutes of cooking, the brown chicken will not be cooked through, you simply want the outside to be brown. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.
Step Two: Saute the Veggies
Add the onion, red peppers, and green bell pepper and saute for a few minutes over medium-high heat until the vegetables soften. You can add an extra drizzle of olive oil here if the pan is dry.
Once the vegetables soften, sprinkle them with the sazon, cumin, and paprika. Saute for a few minutes until the vegetables soften.
Step Three: Braise
Add the white wine into the pan to deglaze and scrape up any brown bits left on the bottom of the pan.
Add the tomato sauce, the remaining marinade, and the bay leaves, and mix until the liquid begins to bubble.
Add the chicken back into the pot along with the potatoes, carrots, and Spanish olives. Pour the chicken broth into the pot until your chicken is mostly submerged.
Step Four: Wait
Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes, then uncover and simmer on low until most of the liquid is soaked up (this took about an hour for me). Season with additional adobo if desired as cooking.
Serve with white rice and enjoy!
Recipe researched using Chef Zee Cooks, Anitas Delights, CookedbyJulie
Expert Tips
- This is not a quick dinner recipe. The cooking time is about 45 minutes, and before that there is a lot of prep work. You can make the actual cooking go faster by preparing your marinade ahead of time, chopping vegetables ahead of time and having all your ingredients on hand and ready to throw in at the right time. Be sure to marinade chicken pieces for at least several hours so the pieces of chicken can soak in the flavor.
- Be sure and brown your chicken in small batches so you don’t crowd your pan. You want to make sure each piece gets a nice brown color as it adds excellent flavor to each bite of your Cuban chicken stew.
- Using bone-in chicken actually makes your chicken more moist and protects it from drying out during cooking.
FAQs
Fricase de Pollo is usually served over rice or arroz con gandules. You could serve it by itself with some crusty bread or flatbread for dipping. Serve it with Papas Rellenas, a Cuban Medianoche, Cuban Picadillo, or Instant Pot Cuban Black Beans for a true Cuban feast.
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat, either reheat on the stove with some extra chicken broth or microwave!
Did you enjoy this recipe for Fricase de Pollo? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes I picked out just for you:
- Chicken Paprikash from Hungary
- Chicken Katsudon from Japan
- Marry Me Chicken Tortellini
- Garlic Parmesan Chicken Skewers
Fricase de Pollo from Cuba
Equipment
- Large Bowl
- Large pot or large dutch oven
Ingredients
- 2 lb bone in, skin-off chicken (drums and thighs)
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- 2 tsp adobo
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 Orange, juiced
- 4 Limes, juiced
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 1 white onion, diced
- ½ red bell pepper, diced
- ½ green bell pepper, diced
- 1 Sazon packet
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp Paprika
- ¾ cup dry white wine, Vino seco
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 russet potato, diced into 1” cubes
- 2-3 Carrots, cut into 1” rounds
- ¾ cup Spanish Olives
- ½ cup Chicken stock, more or less as necessary
Instructions
- Season 2 lb chicken generously with salt, and pepper to taste and 2 tsp adobo. Then in a bowl, add the chicken along with the 2 cloves minced garlic, orange juice from 2 oranges, and lime juice from 4 limes. Make sure the chicken is surrounded by the juices. Cover and marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes but up to 24 hours.
- Once the chicken is done marinating, drizzle 2 tbsp olive oil in a dutch oven and allow it to warm.
- Add the chicken into the skillet, reserving the marinade, and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side until each side is browned. The chicken will not be cooked through, you simply want the outside to be brown. Remove the chicken to a plate and set aside.
- Add 1 onion, ½ red bell pepper, and ½ green bell pepper and saute for a few minutes until the vegetables soften. You can add an extra drizzle of olive oil here if the pan is dry.
- Once the vegetables soften, sprinkle them with the packet of sazon, 1 tsp cumin, and 1 tsp paprika. Saute for a few minutes until the vegetables soften.
- Add ¾ cup white wine into the pan to deglaze and scrape up any bits left on the bottom of the pan.
- Add 1 cup tomato sauce, the remaining marinade, and 2 bay leaves, and mix until the liquid begins to bubble.
- Add the chicken back into the pot along with the cubed potatoes, 2-3 carrots rounds, and ¾ cup spanish olives. Pour ½ cup chicken broth into the pot until your chicken is mostly submerged.
- Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 30 minutes, then uncover and simmer on low until most of the liquid is soaked up (this took about an hour for me). Season with additional adobo if desired as cooking.
- Serve with white rice and enjoy!
Notes
- Chicken: For the most authentic flavor, I prefer bone-in, skinless chicken drums and thighs but you could make this with boneless meat or even chicken breast. I prefer dark-meat chicken
- Adobo: Adobo seasoning is a paste or marinade used in many Mexican dishes. You may be able to find it in your grocery store’s Hispanic or Latino section.
- Orange: You want fresh orange juice for this marinade if possible. Fresh juice is a bit more sour and you want sour orange juice for the best flavor.
- Limes: Again, choose fresh for the best results
- Bell Peppers: I like to use one red pepper and one green pepper
- Sazon packet: Sazon is a common seasoning for Puerto Rican dishes. It contains coriander, cumin, garlic powder and oregano
- Dry White Wine: Choose a wine that you enjoy drinking as this is the base of flavor for the dish. If you prefer not to use wine, use a high quality chicken broth or chicken stock.
- Tomato Sauce: You can also use tomato paste and add a little extra liquid. This is important for the tomato-based sauce
- Russet Potatoes: You don’t need very much potato for this recipe. Just a little bit really helps thicken the sauce
- Spanish Olives: These green olives add a unique flavor to the dish
- Chicken Stock: More or less as necessary
- This is not a quick dinner recipe. The cooking time is about 45 minutes, and before that there is a lot of prep work. You can make the actual cooking go faster by preparing your marinade ahead of time, chopping vegetables ahead of time, and having all your ingredients on hand and ready to throw in at the right time. Be sure to marinade chicken pieces for at least several hours so the pieces of chicken can soak in the flavor.
- Be sure and brown your chicken in small batches so you don’t crowd your pan. You want to make sure each piece gets a nice brown color as it adds excellent flavor to each bite of your Cuban chicken stew.
- Using bone-in chicken actually makes your chicken more moist and protects it from drying out during cooking.
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