Colombian Chicken Soup Ajiaco Food

COLOMBIAN AJIACO {POTATO AND CHICKEN SOUP}

Steps:

• Cook chicken and vegetables: Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add chicken, onions, and garlic and brown outside of chicken for 1-2 minutes each side.
• Cook soup: Add chicken stock, salt, pepper, cilantro, green onion, and guascas and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until chicken is cooked throughout, about 20 minutes.
• Add potatos + shred chicken: Remove chicken and set aside to cool. Add potatoes and corn and cook until tender, about 8 minutes. In the meantime, use a fork to shred chicken breasts.
• Simmer and season: Add shredded chicken back to soup along with the corn on the cob. Simmer on low another five minutes. Season to taste with more salt, pepper, or guascas if needed.
• Garnish and serve: Serve in a chamba soup bowl with white rice, sliced avocados, cream, and capers.

AJIACO COLOMBIANO (COLOMBIAN CHICKEN AND POTATO SOUP)

Steps:

• In a large pot, place the chicken, corn, chicken bouillon, cilantro, scallions, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook for about 30 to 35 minutes, until chicken is cooked and tender. Remove the chicken and set aside.
• Continue cooking the corn for about 15 more minutes. Discard green onion and add red potatoes, white potatoes, and the guascas. Cook for 15 more minutes.
• Uncover and add the frozen papa criolla and simmer for 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper.
• Cut the chicken meat into small pieces and return to the pot. Serve the Ajiaco hot with capers and heavy cream on the side.

COLOMBIAN AJIACO

Steps:

• In a large pot or Dutch oven, place the water, chicken breast, guascas, garlic, green onions, salt, pepper, and a third of the potatoes. Simmer for 45 minutes.
• Remove the green onions and chicken from the pot. Shred chicken using two forks, set aside. Discard the bone and green onions.
• Add the rest of the potatoes and the corn. Simmer for 20 minutes. Taste for salt, add more if necessary. Add shredded chicken and serve.
• Serve ajiaco with avocado, cilantro, sour cream, capers, and rice on the side.

AJIACO (COLOMBIAN CHICKEN, POTATO AND CORN SOUP)

Steps:

• In a 5-quart pot, combine the chicken, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 8 cups water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and skim any foam or impurities from the top. Add the onion, garlic, bay leaf, cilantro stems and scallion whites. Simmer, partially covered, until the chicken is tender and releases easily when pierced with a knife, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a bowl to cool, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile make the aji sauce: In a food processor, combine the scallion greens, hot sauce, tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 cup of the cilantro leaves and pulse to a coarse sauce. Set aside. (Alternatively, the ingredients can be chopped by hand and stirred to combine.)
• Add the potatoes to the soup along with 1 1/4 teaspoons salt. Cover, bring back to a simmer and simmer another 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, remove the chicken meat from the bones and shred with your hands or 2 forks (discard the bones and skin). Set aside.
• Add the corn to the soup and cook until the corn and potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the chicken meat back to the soup and return the soup to a simmer. Add salt if needed.
• Divide the soup among 6 bowls and serve with sliced avocado, sour cream, capers, aji sauce and remaining cilantro leaves.

AJIACO BOGOTANO (CHICKEN AND POTATO SOUP, BOGOTA STYLE)

Steps:

• In a large skillet, brown chicken (seasoned with salt and pepper) in oil then add to Dutch oven or pressure cooker.
• Put potatoes, yucca and corn in pot and season with salt and pepper and cayenne, if using; pour chicken stock into pot.
• Meanwhile, cook onions and garlic in skillet until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Pour in 1 cup water and loosen the bits stuck to the bottom; pour all into pot.
• Cover pot and cook over medium heat 40 minutes for Dutch oven and 30 minutes in pressure cooker (you will have to lower the heat to low once the pressure is built up in the pressure cooker).
• Once done, taste for seasoning, stir in cream, capers, and cilantro, if desired.
• Ladle into bowls and serve with an avocado on the side.

COLOMBIAN CHICKEN HOT POT (AJIACO)

Steps:

• Place chicken in a large stockpot and cover with water; add green onions, bay leaves, cilantro (see NOTE) and peppercorns.
• Bring to a boil, skimming the surface if necessary; once boiling, reduce heat and cook until chicken is tender, about an hour.
• Remove from heat and allow the chicken to cool in its cooking liquid.
• Remove the chicken and cut into eight pieces: 2 drumsticks, 2 thighs, cut each breast into 2 pieces, for a total of 4; discard the rest of the carcass.
• Skim off any fat from the stock, then strain it into a clean Dutch oven or large pot.
• Bring to a boil and add russet potatoes (or yuca) and the Yukon gold potatoes; cook about 15 minutes.
• Stir in the new potatoes and corn and simmer for an additional 20 minutes.
• Return the chicken to the pot, season with salt, if needed, and heat through.
• Meanwhile, just before serving, rough chop the egg, then mash in a small bowl; in another small bowl, scoop out the avocado flesh and mash that.
• Add the egg to the avocado, stir in the green onion, cilantro, green chili, and season with salt.
• Serve the chicken mixture in a heated casserole or earthenware dish, with the avocado salsa, capers, and sour cream on the side.
• NOTE: I, personally, find the taste of the cilantro too strong when it is added to make the stock, so I add it (like a bouquet garni) when the new potatoes are added (the last 20 minutes of cooking), then remove for serving.