Traditional Colombian Ajiaco in a Chamba Soup Pot

October 01, 2022

(Bogota's Chicken and Potato Soup)

Hector Varela's Recipe

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

2 Chicken breasts
Garlic
Onion
Chicken stock
12 small yellow potatoes, cut in halves
1 bunch of scallions
2 ears of corn
8 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into small slices
1 bunch of cilantro
8 tbsp of Guascas*
1 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp capers, drained
2 avocados, peeled, pitted, and thinly sliced
Salt

Directions:

1. The night before, marinate the chicken breasts with garlic, onion, and salt
2. In 4 liter Chamba casserole, put the breasts, add water, cover and cook until the chicken is tender.
3. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Remove the skin from the chicken and discard. Cut the chicken breasts into strips
4. Cook the yellow potatoes in the casserole with the chicken stock until they start to disintegrate. Add more chicken stock to taste. At this point the soup should be thick and fairly smooth.
5. Add the bunch of scallions, the bunch of cilantro, the sliced potatoes, the guascas, and the corn
6. When cooked, remove the bunch of cilantro and the bunch of scallions. 
7. Serve the chicken in soup bowls and pour the soup into the bowls. Pour three tablespoons of creams and one teaspoon of chopped capers on each bowl. Float the sliced avocado on top.

*NOTE: you defintely have to use guascas if youw ant to call your soup Ajiaco. It gives the soup its characteristic flavour! Most latin-american markets carry this herb.

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