Aji de Gallina

Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

• 4 potatoes
• 8 slices bread
• 1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
• 8 cups chicken stock
• 3 lbs. chicken breast
• 6 tbsp aji pepper paste
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 large onions, finely chopped
• 6 tbsp chopped walnuts
• 6 tbsp Parmesan cheese
• 4 hard boiled eggs, halved
• White rice, cooked

Directions

1. Cook the potatoes by boiling in salted water until tender when pieced with a fork.  Remove and let cool.
2. Peel the potatoes, cut into wedges, and set aside.
3. Put the bread into a bowl and pour the evaporated milk over it.  Let soak for a couple minutes.
4. Bring chicken stock to a simmer in a large stock pot.  Add the chicken breasts and simmer until cooked, about 10-15 minutes.  Remove the chicken and set aside to cool.
5. Strain the broth.  Toss out any chunks/fat, but keep the broth.
6. In a large pot, combine the aji pepper paste, oil, garlic, and onions.  Sautee until the onions are soft and translucent.
7. In a food processor, puree the bread & evaporated milk with the nuts & parmesan cheese.  Add the cooked onion mixture and process until smooth.
• If necessary, add some of the reserved chicken broth to thin it down so that you can process it.  Keep track of how much you add.
8. Return the pureed paste to a large pot.  Add 3 cups of reserved broth (minus whatever you used in step #7 to thin it down while processing).\
• You can add more stock to thin down the sauce as necessary.  You want it to be thick, but it's your call exactly how much you want to adjust.
9. Shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces and add to the puree.
10. Serve the aji chicken over white rice with potato wedges and hard-boiled eggs.

Adapted from The Spruce Eats.