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Ecuadorian seco de pollo or chicken stew

Seco de pollo or seco de gallina is an Ecuadorian chicken stew cooked slowly in a sauce of beer, naranjilla, onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, herbs, and spices.

Ecuadorian chicken stew with yellow achiote rice, fried ripe plantains and avocado

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Seco de pollo or chicken stew is another delicious recipe from Ecuador. It is one of dishes that you crave on a day when you want a nice home-cooked meal. It’s the type of meal that not only satisfies your stomach but also gives you that overall happy satisfied soul feeling. This dish is also known as seco de gallina criolla.

If it is made with a young chicken it is called seco de pollo, and if it is made with an older hen it is called seco de gallina criolla. Traditionally, it was a way to cook those older tougher hens and soften the meat by cooking it slowly in a sauce of onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, herbs and spices.

Ecuadorian seco de pollo chicken stew with yellow achiote rice, fried ripe plantains and avocado

The traditional preparation also uses chicha – a fermented corn drink – instead of beer, though most people today prepare it with beer because it is much easier to find and tastes great. Sometimes naranjilla juice is also added. I recommend using a light and mild-flavored beer, if not the flavor might be on the bitter side.

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If that happens, you can offset the bitterness by adding some citrus (orange, sour orange, lemon/lime, naranjilla/lulo juice) until you have the right balance. You can also use a mix of beer and citrus juice, like naranjilla or lulo juice.  Other options for the liquid include a mix of half white wine and half orange juice.  I find the flavor of chicha similar to a semi-dry apple cider, so apple cider is also another alternative to beer for this recipe.

Ecuadorian seco de pollo or chicken stew

Seco de pollo is an easy recipe to make, but it can be time-consuming if you are cooking a hen or gallina, since you have to wait for the chicken meat to get very tender – about 2 to 2 1/2 hours. My mom usually makes it in the pressure cooker if she’s making it the traditional way with an older hen.

Recipe for Ecuadorian seco de pollo

A regular pollo or young chicken will cook much quicker, but the sauce might need more time to thicken. In that case, I recommend removing the chicken pieces and increasing the heat to thicken the sauce quickly. Seco de pollo is usually served with arroz amarillo or yellow rice -just add some achiote to the rice preparation -and fried ripe plantains. Those are the two must-have sides. I also like to serve it with avocado slices, a small salad, and if you need extra starch some whole potatoes sauteed in butter. 

Video Recipe

Ecuadorian chicken stew cooked in beer sauce
Ecuadorian seco de pollo chicken stew with yellow achiote rice, fried ripe plantains and avocado

Seco de pollo {Ecuadorian chicken stew}

Seco de pollo or seco de gallina is an Ecuadorian chicken stew cooked slowly in a sauce of beer (or chicha), naranjilla juice, onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, herbs and spices.
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Course: Main dish
Cuisine: Ecuadorian, Latin American
Keyword: Beer, Chicha, Chicken, Chicken stew, Comfort food, Naranjilla, Seco de pollo
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • 4 to 5 lbs of assorted chicken pieces
  • 2 teaspoons of ground cumin
  • 2 tsp ground achiote or annatto can also use paprika (if you can’t find ground achiote you can use the seeds, they will need to be simmered in the oil until they release their color)
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons of oil
  • 1 onion cut into chunks
  • 6 to 8 garlic cloves
  • 1 to 2 cups of beer or chicken broth/wine/chicha
  • 1 cup of naranjilla lulo juice, can use the frozen concentrate (can be replaced with fresh orange juice as an alternative)
  • 4- 6 tomatoes 1 pound, quartered
  • 2 bell peppers seeds removed and cut into chunks
  • Optional: 1 aji or hot pepper jalapeno or serrano, can also use chili powder
  • 1 bunch cilantro reserve some to chop finely to add at the end
  • 1 bunch parsley leaves only, reserve some to chop finely and add at the end
  • 2 tsp dry oregano or 2-3 fresh oregano sprigs
  • Juice of 1 orange optional
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Side dishes

Instructions

  • Rub the chicken pieces with the ground achiote, cumin, salt and pepper.
  • Blend the beer and the naranjilla juice with the onion chunks, whole garlic cloves, tomatoes, bell peppers, hot pepper, cilantro, parsley, oregano to obtain a smooth sauce or puree.
  • Heat the oil and brown the chicken pieces.
  • Pour the blended beer vegetable mix over the chicken. Bring to a boil.
  • Reduce the heat and cook on low for about an hour (if you were using an old hen it would take longer, but most supermarket chicken will be tender in an hour or less).
  • If the chicken is tender, but sauce isn’t thick yet, then remove the cooked chicken pieces, turn up the heat and cook the sauce until it’s nice and thick, about 10 to 15 minutes. At this point I also like to taste the sauce and adjust salt/spices, if the flavor is slightly bitter from the beer you can neutralize it by adding some freshly squeezed orange juice/lemon juice. Once the sauce has thickened add the chicken pieces back to the pot and mix in the remaining chopped cilantro and parsley.
  • Serve with arroz amarillo or yellow rice and fried ripe plantains. Can also be served with avocado and a small salad.
Ecuadorian chicken stew
Chicken stew cooked in beer with achiote rice, plantains and avocado

Side dish recipes:

Arroz amarillo or yellow rice

Fried ripe plantains

Whole potatoes sauteed in butter

Preparation photos for Ecuadorian seco de pollo chicken stew:

Cilantro and parsley for seco de pollo
Seco de pollo preparation
Seco de pollo with side dishes
Seco de pollo or seco de gallina
Seco de pollo recipe
Seco de pollo or chicken stew
Seco de pollo or Ecuadorian chicken stew
Chicken stew or seco de gallina
Seco de pollo or chicken stew

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Beef stew in tamarind sauce {Seco de carne con tamarindo}
Recipe for beef stew in tamarind sauce, also known as Ecuadorian seco de carne con tamarindo, made by simmering meat in sauce of tamarind, beer, garlic, cumin, achiote, peppers, onions, cilantro or parsley, tomatoes, and other spices.
Check out this recipe
Ecuadorians seco de carne recipe
{Fritada de gallina} Ecuadorian chicha braised chicken
Fritada de gallina is a delicious and tender Ecuadorian chicken dish prepared by cooking chicken in a sauce made with chicha or fermented corn drink, garlic, onion and cumin until the liquid is gone and the chicken is golden brown. Adapted from Michelle O. Fried’s Comidas del Ecuador: Recetas Tradicionales para Gente de Hoy
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Ecuadorian chicken fritada cooked in chicha
Braised goat stew {Ecuadorian seco de chivo}
Ecuadorian seco de chivo is a goat stew dish braised in a sauce of garlic, cumin, achiote, oregano, peppers, onions, cilantro, tomatoes, chicha or fermented corn drink, naranjilla or lulo juice, panela and spices.
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Ecuadorian chicken rice soup {Aguado de gallina}
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Ecuadorian lamb stew {Seco de borrego}
Ecuadorian lamb stew, also known as seco de borrego, cooked slowly in sauce of beer, wine, garlic, cumin, achiote, oregano, peppers, onions, cilantro, parsley, tomatoes, and other spices.
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Grilled chicken a la plancha with avocado salsa {Pollo a la plancha}
This Latin style grilled chicken or pollo a la plancha is served with avocado salsa. The chicken breasts are marinated with a mix of orange juice, lime juice, garlic, cumin, oregano, oil, salt/pepper.
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66 Comments

  1. Thank you Laylita for this wonderful recipe! I have spent a lot of time in Guayaquil as my boyfriend lives there. His mom made this dish for me several times and I loved it! I was craving it the other day and found this website and recipe so I decided to make it for my mom and dad. They both loved it and it came out delicious! I told my boyfriend and now he can’t wait for me to make it for him next time he is here. We are planning on getting married next year and for him to move here to the States, so it’s important that I know how to cook some of his favorite Ecuadorian food! I want him to feel at home and comfortable here. After I told him about the success of the seco de pollo, he jokingly asked me when was I going to learn how to make ceviche de camaron. I told him that would be my next venture, as I’ve already found the recipe for it on here. Can’t wait to try it! Thank you again!!

  2. Laylita, Thank you soo much for this recipe. It may have saved my marraige. My husband is Ecuadorian and I am a southern girl who has mastered southern cuisne but not South American cusine. For the first time ever he was impressed! I have tried other recipes but they have failed to satisfy him. He cleaned his plate last night…. I am forever in debted to you.

  3. My husband is Ecuadorian and Seco de Pollo is his favorite dish. I’m sooooooo happy that you have this and a lot of other Ecuadorian recipes on your site. This is great!!!!!!! I’ve already made the aji criollo and the pickled onions…they turned out wonderful !!!!! Thank you!!!

  4. I love this site! I grew up in Guayaquil and now that I live in the States I miss the food immensely. I would always forget little things in the recipes, but now I can make them just like we did at home! Muchisimas gracias de mi parte y de parte de mis amigos q’ comen conmigo!

  5. Hola Laylita,
    I am so glad I found your website. Your recipes look very authentic. I used to live in Ecuador and miss it very much. Do you have an idea for a beer substitute in this recipe? Would chicken broth work? My parents don’t allow it in the house even for cooking. Also… Do you have a recipe for Caldo de Bagre?
    :)
    Thanks!!!!!!!!!

    Hi Rebekah – you can use chicken broth as a substitute, you could also use naranjilla juice (if you can find it) or chicha. I will post a recipe for caldo de bagre in the next few months.

  6. I never cooked more than arroz con huevo but yesterday I made seco de chivo and today I prepared seco de pollo yummy q rico my husband loved it. Thanks

  7. muchisimas gracias mi senora cosina muy rico, ahora con sus recetas yo le estoy haciendo competencia pero al fin de la cena ella dice k le falta algo.
    Pero mis hijas se comen todo y difrutan de lo que estoy cosinando
    grscias!

  8. My sister, a self-proclaimed carishina, raved about your site because it helps even the lesser-gifted home cooks surprise everyone with mouth-watering renditions of the foods we so love from Ecuador. I have several specialized books on the subject, but none ever mentioned beer on seco de pollo. I am sure this dish will be exquisite.

  9. There are many delicious dishes from this unique country and honestly this is one of the top 5 in my book

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