Recipe · Main course · Lima and criolla cooking
Arroz con pollo with coriander
Green rice with coriander and ají amarillo, cooked in the juices of a chicken simmered with carrot, peas and red pepper, all in one casserole.
- Serves 4
- About 1 hr 15 min (estimate)
- Intermediate
Blended coriander gives the rice its green colour and its aroma: arroz con pollo is a Lima family dish made in a single casserole. The rice cooks in the chicken’s juices, which gives it its flavour.
A family of green rice dishes
According to Wikipedia, in Peru the chicken is cooked in whole pieces and then combined with the rice, and coriander (“culantro”) gives the green colour; there is also a yellow version with palillo and a red version with ají panca. In the north, arroz con pato follows the same logic with duck and, often, dark beer or chicha de jora.
The liquid, measured rather than guessed
That is the difficulty of the dish: the chicken releases a quantity of juice that varies. The method suggested here is to take out the chicken, measure the juice in the measuring jug and top it up to a fixed volume for the rice. This volume (650 ml for 300 g of long-grain rice) is a starting point, to be adjusted according to your rice.
Our version
The volume of liquid depends on the rice, the casserole and the heat: measure the juices as indicated. Do not stir the rice while it cooks, or it will become sticky.
Ingredients
Serves 4
Estimated preparation time
- Active time
- 35 minutes
- Cooking
- 25 minutes for the chicken, 20 minutes for the rice
- Resting
- 10 minutes covered, off the heat
- Total
- About 1 hr 15 min
Techniques: Simmering, Blended sauce.
The chicken
The green base
The rice
To serve
Tick off the ingredients as you go: the boxes are remembered on this device.
Useful equipment
- A 24 cm heavy-based casserole with a lid
- A blender
- A measuring jug
- A cooking thermometer
Method
- Blend the coriander with 150 ml of stock until you have a smooth green purée. Set aside.
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper. In the casserole, brown it skin side down in the oil over a medium-high heat for 5 to 6 minutes, turn it for 2 minutes, then take it out.
- In the same fat, fry the onion for 6 to 8 minutes, the garlic for one minute, then the ají paste and cumin for 2 minutes. Add the coriander purée and cook it for 3 minutes: it darkens a little and loses its raw herb taste.
- Return the chicken with 200 ml of stock. Cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, until 74 °C (165 °F) at the thickest point (the thigh, near the bone).
- Take out the chicken and keep it warm under a lid. Pour the juices from the casserole into the measuring jug and top up with the remaining stock or water to 650 ml.
- Return this liquid to the casserole with the carrot and the red pepper, add a little salt and bring to the boil. Pour in the rice, stir once only, cover and cook over a low heat for 15 minutes without lifting the lid.
- Add the peas on top, cover and cook for another 5 minutes. The rice should have absorbed the liquid; if it is still hard and dry, add 50 ml of hot water and cook for 5 more minutes.
- Place the chicken on the rice, cover and leave to rest for 10 minutes off the heat. Fluff up with a fork and serve, with a salsa criolla.
Signs of success
- The green base has darkened and smells of cooked coriander, not fresh herb.
- The rice is green, tender, each grain separate, with no liquid at the bottom and no burnt crust.
- The chicken comes away from the bone and its skin has kept a little colour.
Precautions
- Poultry: 74 °C (165 °F) at the thickest point, checked with a thermometer and not just by colour.
- One board for the raw chicken, another for the coriander and the vegetables.
Allergens identified
No major allergen in the list of ingredients. Possible: celery (depending on the stock used).
Read the label of the stock and the ají paste.
Always check the labels of the products you buy (sauces, stocks, chilli pastes).
Variations and tips
- “Amarillo” arroz con pollo: palillo (turmeric) instead of coriander, as Wikipedia notes.
- “Rojo” arroz con pollo: an ají panca base instead of the ají amarillo and coriander.
- Some families add dark beer to the cooking liquid; deduct it from the total volume.
Reasonable substitutions
- Basmati or Thai rice: it absorbs less; start with 600 ml and add more if needed.
- Boneless chicken breasts: they cook more quickly (12 to 15 minutes) and give less juice.
Storage
- Rice and leftovers: cooled within an hour of cooking, kept in the fridge, eaten within 24 hours, reheated only once to 70 °C at the core for 2 minutes.
Going further
Sources and dates
2 sources
Prices, opening hours and rules change: every piece of information cited links to its source, with the date it was consulted.
Figures and rules cited
- 74 °C (165 °F) at the thickest point: Minimum core temperature for poultry (chicken, turkey, giblets, stuffing) (United States) . A US threshold, stricter than the FSVO’s general guideline of 70 °C; used for the poultry recipes.
Official source: FoodSafety.gov, safe minimum cooking temperatures (reviewed on 21 November 2024) (new tab) , published on 21 November 2024 · consulted on 3 October 2026 - cooled within an hour of cooking, kept in the fridge, eaten within 24 hours, reheated only once to 70 °C at the core for 2 minutes: Storing cooked rice (United Kingdom)
Official source: NHS, starchy foods and carbohydrates (reviewed on 15 March 2023) (new tab) , published on 15 March 2023 · consulted on 3 October 2026
Sources consulted
- Wikipedia (Spanish), Arroz con pollo (Peruvian version: coriander, palillo, ají panca) (new tab) (consulted on 3 October 2026)
- Wikipedia (Spanish), Arroz con pato (green coriander rice from the north) (new tab) (consulted on 3 October 2026)
How we choose and date our information: our method. Has something changed? Let us know.