Ají de gallina — the creamy Peruvian chicken stew with yellow chilli and walnuts

Ingredients (for 4–6 people)

• 1 whole chicken (about 1.5 kg) or 800 g chicken breast
• 1.5 l water + 1 chicken stock cube, for boiling
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 3–4 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3–4 fresh ají amarillo chillies (or 2–3 tablespoons ají amarillo paste)
• 4 slices of bread (crusts removed), soaked in milk
• 200 ml evaporated milk (or whole milk)
• 100 g walnuts (or pecans), ground
• 50 g grated Parmesan
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• A little turmeric (optional, for colour)

To serve: boiled rice, 4 boiled potatoes, 3 hard-boiled eggs, black olives.

Preparation

1. Boil the chicken in water with salt and the stock cube for 30–40 minutes, until the meat is tender. Remove the chicken, reserve the cooking liquid and shred the meat into strands by hand.
2. Soak the bread slices in milk for about 10 minutes, then mash them with a fork until they form a soft paste.
3. In a pot, heat the olive oil and sauté the onion, garlic and finely chopped ají amarillo chillies for 4–5 minutes, until the onion softens and turns golden.
4. Add the shredded chicken, the soaked bread and 2–3 ladles of the reserved cooking liquid. Stir well and let it simmer over low heat for 10–15 minutes.
5. Add the evaporated milk, the ground walnuts and the Parmesan. Stir and cook for another 5 minutes, adding liquid as needed, until the sauce becomes thick and creamy.
6. Adjust the salt and pepper.
7. Serve hot over boiled rice or alongside boiled potatoes, garnished with halves of hard-boiled eggs and black olives.

Preparation time: 20 minutes. Cooking time: 50 minutes. Servings: 4–6.