Weber Kettle Club Forums

One of the great foods we have in the DC area is 'Pollo ala Brassa', also known as 'Peruvian Chicken'.  It's chicken spit-roasted over charcoal, generally served with french fried potatoes or yucca.  It's pretty awesome stuff-- juicy and crispy and wonderful. 

Ever since I got my rotisserie setup off CL last year, I've been trying to figure it out, with little success.  I mean, my chicken is good and juicy, but the flavors aren't quite right.  I've done some Googling, but the recipes I've tried haven't had the right kinds of flavors (most call for soy sauce, for example, but that doesn't seem to work). 

The trouble is that I'm not able to pick out the flavors when I'm eating in the restaurant, so I was hoping someone here could help me identify the flavors at play, if not a decent recipe.  I'm thinking I should be brining the birds, but again haven't seen that as a cooking component in my online research. 

Any help?

http://bbq.about.com/od/chickenrecipes/r/bl70730a.htm

Not sure if this is close but I will try this soon.

Thanks, Ed.  That seems much more promising that anything I've tried yet.  The vinegar, white wine, and lemon seem like just the thing for the sour/sweet component.  I think I'll give this a shot this weekend. 

Really appreciate it!

We have a Peruvian group at work, I'll have to ask around.

I wouldnt have thought that a Peruvian recipe would call for Sy sauce.  Id be more inclined to ise the vinegar and lemon as you stated.

Sent from another planet using Mental Telepathy.

That's exactly what I thought, jocool, except that I saw a ton of recipes online (some from reputable chefs) that called for soy sauce.  But it doesn't taste right to me, that's for sure.  I think Ed's recipe looks much better. 

Mike, what kind of soy sauce? Most Americans gravitate to the well known  kikkoman but its very salty, and has a bitter iodine like flavor that overpowers. Filipinos generally cook with silver swan, which mixes much better with sour favors like vinegar because its sweet. The national dish adobo is usually equal parts soy sauce and vinegar.

I'm not suggesting that soy sauce is traditional to the Peruvian chicken though but I would give that a shot.

Mike, check out this link. The other recipes I found are just normal American style roasted chicken recipes but this one has a bunch if stuff that may give that special flavor. They also outline how to make the sauces which is also crucial

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/681455

Here is the best post there:

Here is a great rotisserie version of Pollo a la Brasa built from many of the previously mentioned recipes. The addition of Brandy was suggested by a very friendly and helpful Toronto shop owner who specializes in South American products. Since the availability of PalB is poor in Toronto, this is a very tasty recipe that holds us over until our next trip to Washington / Arlington.

Poppi's Famous Pollo a la Brasa

Ingredients
2 Limes, juiced
2 Garlic cloves, crushed through hand press
2T Huacatay en salsa paste (Peru Gourmet brand)
1/2T Sugar
1t Aji paste (Goya brand Aji Amarillo)
1/2t Cumin, ground
1/4t Paprika
2t Annatto powder
1t Salt
1t Black Pepper
1t Mexican Oregano
1T Napoleon Brandy

Procedure:
1) Mix together all ingredients to form a thin (slightly runny) paste.
2) Wash the chicken thoroughly with lemon water and remove any excess fat. Rub the paste all over the inside and outside of the chicken, including under the skin. Place the chicken in a large Ziploc bag and let marinate in the refrigerator for 6 hours
3) Remove trussed chicken from the refrigerator and let come to room temperature while you prepare the grill. Cook on BBQ rotiserrie at lowest setting for 1.5 hrs (or til done, but don't over cook), let stand 10 minutes. Serve with two (or more) dipping sauces.

Dipping sauces:
1. Spicy mayo-mustard : Mix a cup of good mayo with a half cup of French's mustard. Mix in a tablespoon of aji, a good squeeze of lime juice, a teaspoon of ground annatto, and salt and pepper to taste.
2. Fiery green pepper sauce : In a food processor, pulse six jalapeno peppers (to ease the heat, cut out the white interior "ribs") and the juice of one lime. Add salt and pepper to taste.
3. Aji Sauce : Mix aji paste, olive oil, green onions, and lime juice in a medium bowl.
4. Cheese Sauce : Blend queso fresco (or low salt feta), red onion, oil, milk, turmeric mixture, chile, salt and pepper, and lemon juice in a blender until it becomes creamy.

Quote from: pbe gummi bear on August 17, 2013, 11:28:03 PM
Mike, what kind of soy sauce? Most Americans gravitate to the well known  kikkoman but its very salty, and has a bitter iodine like flavor that overpowers. Filipinos generally cook with silver swan, which mixes much better with sour favors like vinegar because its sweet. The national dish adobo is usually equal parts soy sauce and vinegar.

I'm not suggesting that soy sauce is traditional to the Peruvian chicken though but I would give that a shot.

"Most Americans gravitate to the well known  kikkoman but its very salty, and has a bitter iodine like flavor that overpowers. "

This right here ^^^^^^^^

Mushroom soy is the only thing I'll use.....the other stuff is like eating a mouthful of salt....not very good salt...... :o

That's awesome, Lawrence!  Thanks so much.  Especially for the lead on the sauces.  You're right, those are key.  And that is great wisdom about the finer points of soy sauces-- I had  no idea.

And that recipe sounds really right to me... I'm trying to taste it in my imagination, and it's really good.  ;-)  There are a few specialized ingredients in the list though, which I'll have to start looking for this week. 

I need to do two or three chickens for my daughter's back-to-school picnic on Tuesday, so I will prolly give Ed's recipe a try first.  But the lime and the brandy and the exotic ingredients are very intriguing.  And it'll be fun to drop in on some Hispanic groceries and look around.  I see a Mexican Coke in my future.  ;-)

(BTW, the recipe's reference to 'Washington and Arlington' is almost certainly about 'El Pollo Rico', an incredible Peruvian chicken joint in Arlington, VA.  Not to be missed if one's travels bring them to Washington DC.  When Anthony Bourdain did his show on DC, word of mouth compelled him to try El Pollo Rico, and he was dumbfounded at the great chicken.)

 Bourdain at El Pollo Rico: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CA2MlGoo7o Dang, That's alot of Chicken! The best line is "But, Marinated in what?!?!?.... There's some flavor in this but I have no idea what it is!" I am left wondering the same thing when I eat Pollo a la Brasa.

Yeah, that's the place!  I have no illusion that my chicken will ever get even close to that stuff.  There are Peruvian chicken joints all around that place, and El Pollo Rico is always the busiest.  It's insanely good.

They had a few off years, when their old building (with ancient, built-in pits) was demolished, but their fancy new pits are seasoned now and they are as good as ever. 

Oh, and to answer Lawrence and buckie's questions, no, I haven't seen any recipes that specified *what kind* of soy sauce. 

Research is underway.  Tried Ed's recipe today as a practice run for multiple birds for tomorrow's picnic at my kid's elementary school.

(http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r782/MikeStavlund/IMG_0412_zps1c08e9cb.jpg) (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/MikeStavlund/media/IMG_0412_zps1c08e9cb.jpg.html)

(http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r782/MikeStavlund/IMG_0415_zps06143c39.jpg) (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/MikeStavlund/media/IMG_0415_zps06143c39.jpg.html)

In an effort to get the fire on just one side of the food, I elevated the bottom grate by turning two bricks on edge on the bottom grate (you can see them in the photo, wrapped in aluminum foil), then putting another bottom grate on top and setting the drip pan and coal baskets on that.  Seemed to produce a ton of heat-- the lid thermo on my SS performer pegged out in the first few minutes of the cook.   

The meat is resting now, so we'll see how the flavor is in a minute.

It tasted pretty good!  Not going to make the folks at El Pollo Rico close up shop, but the best rotis chicken I've made yet, that's for sure. 

It needed a bit more salt, and a longer marinate (I cheated it down to about 1.5 hours).  I think next time I'll marinate the chicken overnight.  And maybe add some oregano.  And maybe brandy instead of white wine.  ;-)

Looks like I'll have to wait awhile, though, as the kids' 'picnic' seems to be changing into a 'snack and playdate'.  And I'm sitting on a dozen smoke-roasted potatoes that I was going to make into potato salad...

Glad it worked out. :-)

I went ahead and made chicken and potato salad anyway, to rave reviews.  One woman came up to me in broken English and told me the 'pollo ala brassa' was very, very good.  I pressed her for some help with the flavors, and she insisted it was perfect.
"Doesn't it need more salt, though?" I asked.
"Yes, more salt," she said with a smile. 

I marinated this time for about 4 hours, and it could have gone longer.  I also substituted brandy for the white wine in Ed's recipe, and added a big pinch of oregano to the marinade.  Also upped the salt by 50%, but it could have used a little bit more. 

(http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r782/MikeStavlund/IMG_0418_zps4cac9547.jpg) (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/MikeStavlund/media/IMG_0418_zps4cac9547.jpg.html)

This time, I just grabbed an old food grate to elevate the coals up next to the food.  Which allowed me to put the drip pan down on the bottom grate for better radiant heat.  I also foiled off 2/3 of the coal grate to alter the air flow over the coals and food.  Turned the top vent to move the heat over the food.  Plain lump with no smoke wood.

(http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r782/MikeStavlund/IMG_0420_zps7812fa10.jpg) (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/MikeStavlund/media/IMG_0420_zps7812fa10.jpg.html)

Finished product, ready to rest:
(http://i1367.photobucket.com/albums/r782/MikeStavlund/IMG_0421_zps4f8d9327.jpg) (http://s1367.photobucket.com/user/MikeStavlund/media/IMG_0421_zps4f8d9327.jpg.html)

I also made the spicy sauce that gummi pointed me to.  Roasted the jalepenos first, which took away some of the heat and sweetened them up a bit.  Paired with the mayo-and-lime sauce, it was really nice.

I'm thinking we should prevail upon Marty to make some kind of schwag for picnics and potlucks like this.  Maybe a WKC badge on a little signpost that could sit on the table to let folks know why the food tastes so danged good.  Or maybe a WKC nameplate where the cook could write a description of the food.  Or maybe a WKC stamp with a portable ink pad so we can just stamp stunned diners on the forehead:  "Whap!!  You've been WKCed!"

That looks amazing mike! Great job!


"my kettle is more powerful it will do almost anything."

Thanks, Michael.  I've been thinking a lot about your wisdom that it's a lot easier to do a dish well when you do it for a lot of reps (like in a restaurant kitchen).  So as much as I'm tired of eating chicken, I'm sure that doing this meal twice in two days helped me to improve it considerably. 

Mike, those photos made my mouth water.  I'm going to have to try that recipe.  Thanks for sharing.

You've inspired me and my wife, Mike! We are gonna give the PAB a go tomorrow. Our setup is similar to yours. I just picked up a roti and I'm doing the inaugural cook on my red ss.

Here's some pics of my wife's prep. We used the recipe from chowhound but with Bourbon instead of brandy.

(https://sphotos-b-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/q71/s720x720/1157577_10100122134213858_1481634136_n.jpg)

(https://sphotos-a-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/q74/s720x720/1234929_10100122134303678_601397569_n.jpg)

Here's the paste
(https://sphotos-b-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/q82/s720x720/1233486_10100122134268748_661900931_n.jpg)

(https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-prn2/q71/s720x720/1238770_10100122134238808_1351441973_n.jpg)

That looks incredible, Lawrence!  I gotta get to the market and try to find some of those pastes and specialized ingredients. 

Congrats on the new rotis, and post some photos of the finished product!

Quote from: mike.stavlund on August 25, 2013, 10:50:00 AM
That looks incredible, Lawrence!  I gotta get to the market and try to find some of those pastes and specialized ingredients. 

Congrats on the new rotis, and post some photos of the finished product!

Will do mike, gonna fire it up in a few hours. There's a nice market close to me. Let me know if you have trouble finding things and I can send you stuff.

I tried out edhead's recipe on a few friends a couple days after he posted it, and I got nothing but rave reviews.  No open dry white, so I used vermouth. I will definitely try the jalopena dipping sauce this week when I go in for round two. I don't have a rotisserie, so I just stood a couple chickens up in the kettle and the came out looking purty. No pics, as I tend to eat when the eating is good.

Here's today's cook. The rotisserie was alot of fun. I could have forked it on better though. The cook LOOKED amazing but just turned out OK. It was not as tender as peruvian chicken should be, but the taste was close. My wife made some of the green sauce, but something wasn't quite right. Still tasty, but not what I was expecting.

Cheers!


(https://sphotos-b-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc3/q71/s720x720/1234671_10100122633677928_1264529681_n.jpg)

My setup, Red SS, Weber Roti.
(https://sphotos-a-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/q71/s720x720/935955_10100122633707868_1796872275_n.jpg)

Fired up the baskets with gas assist, put a grate on top, and cooked the gizzard, liver, and heart.
(https://sphotos-a-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/q71/s720x720/1098279_10100122633682918_37286401_n.jpg)

Appetizer
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/q71/s720x720/581531_10100122633757768_1966476927_n.jpg)

Loaded and chugging along at 350F +/-50F, The Weber thermometer looks nice but its a POS.
(https://sphotos-a-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/q71/s720x720/1235089_10100122633802678_2119614233_n.jpg)

Halfway done
(https://sphotos-b-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/q71/s720x720/1173710_10100122633827628_2137182267_n.jpg)

Done done.  ;D
(https://sphotos-b-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/q71/s720x720/993980_10100122633852578_217524422_n.jpg)

Here's your plate!
(https://sphotos-a-pao.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/q71/s720x720/1236050_10100122633967348_865973711_n.jpg)

This is next on my rotisserie list.

Your chicken looks great, Lawrence, and your SS is breathtaking.  Unbelievable.

Sorry your flavors weren't what you wanted, but I'm sure you can tweak things as you go.  FWIW, I take some string to truss up the birds, mostly to keep the dark meat protecting the white meat a bit, and also to keep the dark meat from getting overdone too quickly.  Also, the folks at the pollo ala brassa joints tie theirs up, too. 

As for me, with the help of the kind people at the Hispanic Market-- and my daughter who is learning Spanish-- I found all of the secret ingredients this morning.  Like most grocery stores, different kinds and brands of spices were in entirely different places, so it was key to have someone take me by the hand and locate everything.  And for those watching at home, the 'aji amarillo' is a hot yellow pepper paste, the annatto powder is some kind of tree bark (not much flavor, either), and the 'huacatay' is a black mint paste.  Pretty interesting flavors that I'm stoked to try out. 

Oh, and all three secret ingredients came to a grand total of $7.  Plus a nice Mexican Coke for daddy. 

Annatto powder is ground Annatto seeds. It is used  to make a achiote paste and imparts a slightly earthy flavor but is more about color than flavor.

Looks like I am making it this weekend. I will be using the other recipe though,  the one I posted, adjusted for more salt, Mexican oregano, and brandy. Next time I will try the second method.

Quote from: edhead35 on August 26, 2013, 10:31:25 AM
Annatto powder is ground Annatto seeds. It is used  to make a achiote paste and imparts a slightly earthy flavor but is more about color than flavor.

Looks like I am making it this weekend. I will be using the other recipe though,  the one I posted, adjusted for more salt, Mexican oregano, and brandy. Next time I will try the second method.

thanks for correcting me on annatto, Ed.  I was thinking that it must be more for color than flavor. 

and -- dang! -- you reminded me that I totally forgot to buy Mexican oregano today.  And it would have only set me back about 99 cents at the market...

I just had a PAB sandwich using yesterday's leftovers. They unequivocal verdict is that the chicken was overcooked. They were tiny chicken at <3 lbs each. I also had two baskets going on either side. Next time I'll do one basket, tie up the chicken, and watch my temp better.

Quote from: mike.stavlund on August 26, 2013, 11:17:34 AM

Quote from: edhead35 on August 26, 2013, 10:31:25 AM
Annatto powder is ground Annatto seeds. It is used  to make a achiote paste and imparts a slightly earthy flavor but is more about color than flavor.

Looks like I am making it this weekend. I will be using the other recipe though,  the one I posted, adjusted for more salt, Mexican oregano, and brandy. Next time I will try the second method.

thanks for correcting me on annatto, Ed.  I was thinking that it must be more for color than flavor. 

and -- dang! -- you reminded me that I totally forgot to buy Mexican oregano today.  And it would have only set me back about 99 cents at the market...

I just bought a pound of Mexican oregano. Lol. Gonna share it with friends and family and still have way more than I need.

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130826_170647-1.jpg)

Found some sauces at the local supermarket.

A pound of oregano is a lot of oregano!  Wow.

Yeah, way too much but it was $16
A few friends have been looking for it so I bought a big bag,  and will probably still never use it all.

Mike, I've enjoyed the thread and want to try this recipe and technique. Just a few questions about mechanics. The way you truss the chicken on the roti. - is that your creation, or is there a link for that? I know how to truss a bird before putting it on the grill but that style pulls the legs up tight in the center. Yours seems to have the legs tied out to the side and also tied to the spit forks. Looks interesting.

Also, when I do "normal" chicken on the roti I just use the regular style of coals on both sides on the charcoal grate. I'm assuming the elevated heat/one side setup is a part of this Peruvian style, but what does that do to your cooking time? With the old style I usually have an hour to hour and half, depending on one or two birds, size, etc.?

I like this because I'm not only intrigued by the flavor possibility, but I love to try new setups.

Here is a good video that shows trussing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWLt6G85zC4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Yeah, that's the way I learned to do it and it works great. I thought Mike's trussing looked a little different than that though.

Quote from: Mark Schnell on August 29, 2013, 03:44:42 AM
Mike, I've enjoyed the thread and want to try this recipe and technique. Just a few questions about mechanics. The way you truss the chicken on the roti. - is that your creation, or is there a link for that? I know how to truss a bird before putting it on the grill but that style pulls the legs up tight in the center. Yours seems to have the legs tied out to the side and also tied to the spit forks. Looks interesting.

Also, when I do "normal" chicken on the roti I just use the regular style of coals on both sides on the charcoal grate. I'm assuming the elevated heat/one side setup is a part of this Peruvian style, but what does that do to your cooking time? With the old style I usually have an hour to hour and half, depending on one or two birds, size, etc.?

I like this because I'm not only intrigued by the flavor possibility, but I love to try new setups.

I haven't tested this empirically Mark, but intuition tells me that coals on one side will cook a bird slower than cooks on both sides- having one shorter cycle of randiant heat on the bird instead of two may also affect how the skin crisps.

This assumes that:

-the radiant heat from two sided coals is double that of coals on one side.
-internal kettle ambient temp is the same on both setups

I am not sure how noticable this would be.

Great questions, Mark! I just wish I had better answers-- I'm just making this up as I go along.  ;-)  In fact, I just went back to see the photos to remember exactly how I trussed those birds.  So I'm no expert, but I can tell you what motivates my setup and trussing.

re: trussing.  I'm trying to keep the dark meat nice and tight to protect the white meat, and also trying to keep the whole bird from flopping around on the forks too much.  So I kinda modify my classic trussing method by first running the string around the spit to kinda pull the legs down a bit, then wrapping around the ends of the drumsticks once, then passing the string by the sides of the body to tuck in both the thighs and the wings, then just tying the whole thing off to the spit at the head end. 

re:  heat.  Yep, gummi is right on about my reasoning.  I have done a lot of rotis cooks with a full basket on either side of the kettle, which brings the whole kettle up to a good roasting temp and gets the chicken done just a bit slower than a traditional non-rotis cook.  And the meat is super-juicy for sure, but the skin isn't too crisp.  Then I noticed that someone here (Brian, maybe?) said he always does rotis cooking with the heat on one side, so I thought I'd try it (I also has a friend who hand-turns a whole lamb on a rotis over an open pit every Easter, and he builds the fire on just one side).  But the bigger factor is something you can see if you take a look at the video link that gummi posted earlier in this thread: the traditional pollo a la brassa method has the birds on spits, but that whole spit assembly also *rotates* over the coals, giving each bird a close pass over some high radiant heat every minute or so.  So I was trying to approximate that, without having the fire right under the bird the whole time (which I can only imagine would expose the chicken to a lot of flare-ups). 

So.  In an effort to get some more radiant heat, I elevated the coal baskets to sit right next to the birds.  Which does help with flavor and crisp skin, but also takes a bit longer.  Or at least it seems to-- I've only tried it this way twice now.  The lid therm on my old SS says the kettle is as hot as ever, but for some reason the whole process seems to take more like 90 minutes.  Again, your mileage may vary and I might be totally wrong about this (like gummi, it seems to me that the ambient temp inside the kettle should be just as hot, since there are the same number of coals inside there, but my experience hasn't borne that out just yet). 

Give it a try in whatever way seems sensible to you, and let us know how it worked!  I'm sure we're all eager to learn from one another, and as much as I love Peruvian chicken, I can't eat it more than once a week.  ;-)

Another BIG difference with the commercial sized cookers is that the drippings fall onto another bird.

"I haven't tested this empirically Mark, but intuition tells me that coals on one side will cook a bird slower than cooks on both sides"

Tested empirically on meatloaf & it does work as described...........on meatloaf 8)

Quote from: pbe gummi bear on August 29, 2013, 10:57:58 AM
Another BIG difference with the commercial sized cookers is that the drippings fall onto another bird.

Exactly.   In fact, at some of the places I've been, each spit travels vertically maybe two feet, then follows another parallel track down to take a pass right over the coals.  So even more juices marinating each chicken. 

Thanks, Mike and others. I love this place!!

Just made both versions of the marinades. Used brandy in both instead of wine. It felt good to use some of the mexican oregano I just bought, although it will take me forever to use 1lb of mexican oregano LOL.
Ran out of paprika, so I have to add that later. Ill rub the birds tomorrow morning early and put them in the fridge, and cook them around 5pm tomorrow.

Quote from: edhead35 on August 30, 2013, 09:08:43 AM
Just made both versions of the marinades. Used brandy in both instead of wine. It felt good to use some of the mexican oregano I just bought, although it will take me forever to use 1lb of mexican oregano LOL.
Ran out of paprika, so I have to add that later. Ill rub the birds tomorrow morning early and put them in the fridge, and cook them around 5pm tomorrow.

Good luck, Ed. Take alot of pictures.

Ed, you must be a genius systems engineer or something:  parallel processing with side-by-side tasting is a great way to learn a ton about this dish.  Thanks for trying both, and for sharing your results!

(I learned about this from a friend of mine who was wanting to learn about cooking on a Weber.  I told him what I tell everyone:  roast a whole chicken.  He talked to me about technique for a long time, then gave it a go.  But instead of doing what I would have done and cooking one chicken once a week to learn, he (like the systems engineer that he is) bought *two* chickens.  Fired up the grill, roasted one, took it off, rested it, tasted it, then seasoned bird #2, stoked up the fire again, cooked another chicken, and made further notes.  Within one more cook he had his seasoning and method down cold.  Moved up to pork butts shortly after (following buckie's 'snake' method).  As Chasing Smoke has taught me, the key to learning about cooking stuff is *repetition*, and the closer the reps are to one another the more you learn.)

Is it odd that I want a rotisserie just to try this recipe?? Great work guys I love this thread!


"my kettle is more powerful it will do almost anything."

Is it odd that I want a rotisserie just to try this recipe?? Great work guys I love this thread!


"my kettle is more powerful it will do almost anything."

Quote from: Chasing_smoke on August 30, 2013, 04:22:38 PM
Is it odd that I want a rotisserie just to try this recipe?? Great work guys I love this thread!


"my kettle is more powerful it will do almost anything."

not odd at all. Of course most of my disposable income goes to cooking related stuff.

I know what you mean, CS!  I'm leaving for the weekend (and away from the internets), but I'm tempted to stick around here just to see how Ed's cook turns out. 

Oh, well, maybe I can take some chook for a spin next week. 

Cook underway. Here is a sneak peek.

The greener or darker one is the huacatay and aji salsa version, the browner or say redder one is the version I posted from BBQ about.com

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_112323.jpg)

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_112901.jpg)

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_175324.jpg)

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_175329.jpg)

Looks like one of my wing tips popped out. :o

I need another set of rotisserie forks. For sure.

So the results were unanimous. Everyone loved the huacatay-aji paste recipe more, but loved the acidity and saltiness of the recipe I posted up from bbq.about.com, however there were reasons. They found the huacatay-aji recipe more "latin" tasting, because they were expecting latin. If posed with either chicken on separate days, they all loved both and especially if I could balance the salt more on the huacatay-aji pollo a la brassa.

I wasn't 100% happy with the results, because I had some trouble with the heat, it dropped part way through, and I lost the crispy skin. It was quite gooey.


The one on the left in both pics is the huacatay-aji.
(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_202534.jpg) (http://s84.photobucket.com/user/edhead35/media/Brown%20Joe/20130831_202534.jpg.html)

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130831_204120.jpg) (http://s84.photobucket.com/user/edhead35/media/Brown%20Joe/20130831_204120.jpg.html)

Whoa, nice! Your fire is pretty close too. How did it taste?

Taste was amazing, but I need to be more proactive on keeping the heat higher, so I lost the crispy skin. If I used smaller chickens it would have been perfect, or make a larger charcoal basket I dont have to feed 3 times.

Dinner was so late, I was really really drunk before the food was done. :) Margarita night

Quote from: edhead35 on September 01, 2013, 06:27:18 AM
Dinner was so late, I was really really drunk before the food was done. :) Margarita night

Ha ha. Been there done that, but oh baby does it taste good.

Thanks for sharing your results, Ed.  That looks incredible.  And I think that huacatay-aji bird looks very, very similar to the ones I see at the restaurants.  Nice work.  Can't wait to try it. 

So would you add a bit more acid and salt to the huacatay-aji recipe?  How much?  And what kind of acid?  I was thinking about using some lime juice in the marinade. 

(I added half as much salt as the recipe called for to the 'standard' recipe, and found it to still be a bit bland.  I'm guessing Ed added a bit more than that.)

Definitely some lime juice and white vinegar.

Will do, Ed!  Thanks a million. 

I've got two chickens in the fridge, eagerly awaiting the treatment. 

...just tucked a bird into the huacatay-aji marinade, which I fortified with another half lime and another pinch of salt.  The marinade looked and smelled incredible.  Looking forward to dinner tomorrow!

I broke the cherry on my new roti this evening with a couple of these.  Still using the first recipe listed as there aren't any decent latin markets up here in bland-land, so until I take a trip to a real city, I'm going with  that (using achiote, lime juice and jalopena to the marinade for a little more kick). Definitely looks prettier than my beer can method, and so damn moist... how have I lived so long without a rotisserie? Will be going in for seconds shortly.  ;)

(http://i1330.photobucket.com/albums/w579/O_Glenn/CIMG0091_zpscee65dfd.jpg)
(http://i1330.photobucket.com/albums/w579/O_Glenn/CIMG0093_zpsf319b9d9.jpg)

Very Nice, OGlenn! You can see that the radiant heat makes a big difference on the bird on the bottom- the breast that is closer to the fire is more brown than on the other end.

Congrats on the roti, Glenn, and wow what a great way to break it in!  Your chickens look incredible. 

My cook went well today too.  I marinated the bird overnight in the huacatay-aji recipe...  except I added some more lime juice to bump up the 'sour' flavors, and added a pinch more salt, too.  Totally forgot to rub the marinade under the skin last night, which would have made it even better, I'm sure (I did rub some marinade under the skin shortly before cooking, though). 

But bottom line:  WOW.  Incredible flavors.  That recipe is right on the money, at least according to my taste buds.  Really reminds me of the best Peruvian chicken places in the DC area I've visited.  It was a huge hit.  My wife is a great cook, and so I'm always looking for feedback on stuff I make-- adjustments, additions, subtractions, etc..  She didn't have a thing to say about this except that it tasted amazing. 

As others have noted above, the sauces are key to the whole Pollo a la brassa experience, and I followed two recipes from the huacatay-aji recipe.  The green jalepeno sauce, and the mayo/mustard/aji sauce.  Both seemed spot on to me.  And, just like in the restaurants, I ended up combining them 1-to-1 on my plate for the best sauce of all.

Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread.  It's been a really fruitful collaboration!   

Saw a sign from heaven today at the liquor store when the brandy section included a Peruvian brandy-- I guess it's time to make this recipe again!

Mike,

I had never had Peruvian chicken before I saw this post.  Yesterday, my wife and I decided to try it and went to a place in Annapolis called Pollo Ricky's.  We were both floored by how flavorful the chicken was.

(http://i836.photobucket.com/albums/zz290/sttony1208/Grills/IMG_0982.jpg) (http://s836.photobucket.com/user/sttony1208/media/Grills/IMG_0982.jpg.html)

The green sauce was amazing.

(http://i836.photobucket.com/albums/zz290/sttony1208/Grills/IMG_0983.jpg) (http://s836.photobucket.com/user/sttony1208/media/Grills/IMG_0983.jpg.html)

Also, if you're still looking for a recipe and have Amazon Prime check out season 12, episode 7 of America's Test Kitchen (free with Prime).  Seemed simple enough - we're going to try it.

Here's the recipe from America's Test Kitchen:

Peruvian Roast Chicken with Garlic and Lime
Serves 4
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup lightly packed fresh mint leaves
2 tablespoons kosher salt
6 medium garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons finely grated zest and 1/4 cup juice from 2 limes
1 teaspoon minced habanero chile (see note)
1(3 1/2-to 4-pound) whole chicken

Process all ingredients except chicken in blender until smooth paste forms, 10 to 20 seconds. Using fingers or handle of wooden spoon, carefully loosen skin over thighs and breast and remove any excess fat. Rub half of paste beneath skin of chicken. Spread entire exterior surface of chicken with remaining paste. Tuck wingtips underneath chicken. Place chicken in gallon-size zipper-lock bag and refrigerate at least 6 hours and up to 24 hours.

Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Place vertical roaster on rimmed baking sheet. Slide chicken onto vertical roaster so chicken stands upright and breast is perpendicular to bottom of pan. Roast until skin just begins to turn golden and instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of breast registers 140 degrees, 45 to 55 minutes. Carefully remove chicken and pan from oven and increase oven temperature to 500 degrees.

When oven is heated to 500 degrees, place 1 cup water in bottom of pan and return pan to oven. Roast until entire skin is browned and crisp and instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees inserted in thickest part of breast and 175 degrees in thickest part of thigh, about 20 minutes (replenish water as necessary to keep pan from smoking), rotating bird 180 degrees halfway through cooking.

Carefully remove chicken from oven and let rest, still on vertical roaster, 20 minutes. Using kitchen towel, carefully lift chicken off vertical roaster and onto platter or cutting board. Carve chicken and serve, with a spicy mayonnaise if desired.

For the Green Sauce (not from America's Test Kitchen)
3 jalapeño chili peppers, seeded if desired (I use about half the seeds for a medium-hot sauce), and roughly chopped
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from one lime
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Decided to resurrect this thread, as I found another version of this. It's in spanish but you can view the ingredients as he scans them. It uses a red chili paste instead of the amarillo aji paste.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XxYAgRDpJD0

(http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k4/edhead35/Brown%20Joe/20130826_170647-1.jpg)

From my old post, the one on the left is the similar sauce to the one in the video.

After speaking with some Peruvians, the soy sauce or salsa soya, is traditional in Peruvian cooking in that it might not be thousands of years old traditional but there was a huge influx of Asians that migrated to Peru a long time ago, and for most of their modern cooking (not sure, maybe 100 years?) they use soy sauce alot.

Again, as some others have said, Kikkoman soy sauce is shit. Go to an Asian grocer and grab a different brand that isnt all salt. A natural fermented soy sauce is even better.

I'm trying this this weekend, my order of Huacatay Salsa/Black Mint Paste is on its way  ;D

Good idea, Chad.  The mint is key I think. 

And thanks, Ed, for the insight into soy sauce in Peru....  I figured there must be some migrational explanation or something.

And thanks to you, I swore off the Kikkoman soy sauce.  Went to a proper Asian grocer tonight and grabbed some light soy sauce with a label I can barely read.  ;-)

    The Chinese beat Columbus by 800 years or so........ ::)

Quote from: 1buckie on March 04, 2014, 06:06:06 PM


    The Chinese beat Columbus by 800 years or so........ ::)

0
Explorer Tim Severin believes this to be true, even recreated the voyage... http://www.timseverin.net/books_china_voyage.html (http://www.timseverin.net/books_china_voyage.html)

Makes for a great read.

This looks great. Has anyone tried this on a Roti? I am thinking this would great cooked this way. Two Chickens at once, Indirect two sides, I am pretty sure it would be moist and crispy.

I have never had this, but I can taste the flavors already. MD, I could see the green sauce as a staple.

Quote from: glrasmussen on March 04, 2014, 07:59:33 PM
This looks great. Has anyone tried this on a Roti? I am thing this would great cooked this way. Two Chickens at once, Indirect two sides, I am pretty sure it would be moist and crispy.

I have never had this, but I can taste the flavors already. MD, I could see the green sauce as a staple.

Hey Greg, most of the cooks in this thread are done on a roti. Did you miss them earlier?

PBE, must have... Me bad! I have never had this marinade/rub before, but can see how the ingredients would blend together. It is an East/Mex combo. I want it to look like this, but with the Peruvian flavor,
(http://i1271.photobucket.com/albums/jj623/glrasmussen/null_zpsaff3d1a5.jpg) (http://s1271.photobucket.com/user/glrasmussen/media/null_zpsaff3d1a5.jpg.html)

Quote from: pbe gummi bear on March 04, 2014, 08:04:40 PM

Quote from: glrasmussen on March 04, 2014, 07:59:33 PM
This looks great. Has anyone tried this on a Roti? I am thing this would great cooked this way. Two Chickens at once, Indirect two sides, I am pretty sure it would be moist and crispy.

I have never had this, but I can taste the flavors already. MD, I could see the green sauce as a staple.

Hey Greg, most of the cooks in this thread are done on a roti. Did you miss them earlier?

There seems to be several recipe families. Acidity and salt version , mint and yellow pepper version , or acidity and red pepper sauce version .

The true Peruvian restaurants that I've been to have revolving roti racks that bring the birds in close proximity with the coals at regular intervals.  So I try to approximate that by putting the coals *right next* to the birds to get a nice sear on the skin.  I generally do this by using a beater top grate on the grill, and stacking old-school wire-style coal baskets on top of that, right next to the chicken(s).  FWIW.

'

Don't forget a good drip pan (!), and you might consider covering part of the bottom grate with aluminum foil to direct the air flow over the coals a bit more than usual. 

'

Looks awesome! Like the lower/upper combo for the fuel.

'

Your chicken looks great, Chad!  That setup is really intriguing-- I should try it myself. 

I love the plywood windbreak, too.  Super slick setup.

http://bbq.about.com/od/chickenrecipes/r/bl70730a.htm

So I tried this version out for my first roti cook on my Genesis gasser (sorry, dont have a roto ring for the kettle...yet!).

I have to say I was very pleased, and the wife was too! The marinade reminded me of the Oaxacan grilling paste that Williams Sonoma use to sell. I don't think I'd change a thing.

Nice work, Brickout! 

That recipe does look like a good one.  Two things especially stand out to me as helping this preparation quite a lot: 

1.  The lemon-water wash.  Something about that extra acidity seems to clean the chicken, and make it a bit more tacky for the addition of the flavor paste/marinade. 

2.  The overnight marinate.  Getting those flavors in contact with the chicken-- and especially under the skin-- for a good long time makes a big difference. 

So I dropped in on a real hole-in-the-wall Peruvian Chicken place this week (it was literally *behind* a strip mall, in the basement) and it was incredible.  (It was 'Wild Chicken' in Fairfax, VA for all you locals.  Though I still think El Pollo Rico in Arlington is the best.)   The reason it stood out to me was that it was definitely from the soy sauce family of these recipes.  And though I've scoffed at the soy flavors in Pollo ala Brassa in the past, I'm a true believer now.  In the right proportion, it really gives a nice and interesting flavor.  Overall I found the chicken to be a bit too salty, but it was really juicy and full of flavor.  The place is small enough that they take the time to put the seasonings under the skin, and to marinate them sufficiently, etc..  The guy at the pit told me they cook for 70 minutes in total. 

They use lump, too.  It was in a big brown bag marked 'for professional use only-- not for resale', so of course I was sorely tempted to try to buy a bag from the pitmaster.  ;-)

Hey, I was just revisiting this thread to find something for @Chasing_smoke

I can't remember if I mentioned this earlier, but one game-raising aspect of this cooking method is the smoke created by the chicken fat/juices.  In the pro restaurants, this is achieved by the rotating rotisseries which take turns putting the chicken in close proximity with the lump charcoal.  When I cook at home, I've started putting a sacrificial charcoal fire directly under the chicken(s).  Nothing huge, and nothing that will create a tremendous amount of heat, but just enough to keep going for the first 45-60 minutes to create some smoke before it goes out. 

Hey Mike, you did mention that right above, scroll up. From your earlier description is sounds like it's temporary and occasional, so you're adding and then removing and then adding, etc, those charcoal baskets to have high direct heat (broiling) for awhile.

Thanks! 

I think I'm even confusing myself... the only place I use a charcoal baskets is right *next* to the chicken, with the baskets sitting on an old beater food grate.  I also make a small pile of charcoal on the *charcoal* grate below the chicken (and below the beater food grate).  I leave the baskets in place until the chicken is done, and the sacrificial pile of charcoal usually burns out before then. 

So, heat directly down low, so that the drippins waft back up onto rotating food + more and hotter heat up near the food?

I may need a visual, I've started to lose the scent so to speak.

I just unearthed my rotisserie and am wanting to use it.

Wow.  Not sure how I never saw this post before today.  Really cool that Anthony Bourdain randomly went in El Pollo Rico.  I made sure to stop by there in September when I was in DC for a friends wedding.  Same amazing chicken as usual.  I'll have to try out the recipes posted on the first few pages of this thread.

Here is the recipe that I finally found that I think if the closest to El Pollo Rico that I've tried so far.
http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/08/peruvian-style-grilled-chicken-with-green-sauce-recipe.html

Here's proof I was there! 

(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20171103/bdc4ab9b5d6237acb91bcb409480e6ec.jpg)


Sent from my iPhone using Weber Kettle Club mobile app (https://siteowners.tapatalk.com/byo/displayAndDownloadByoApp?rid=91018)

Dang it, now I'm hungry. I was there with a couple fellas last Friday. Really good eats. Thanks for the link - I'll put this one on the short list.

Hey, @addicted-to-smoke , I am sorry for the confusion. 

I have two sources of heat-- a major one, and a minor one. 

The major source is the one I cook the chicken with-- charcoal baskets positioned right *next to* the chicken.  If you've been able to scrounge up a couple of the old school wire-style charcoal baskets, you have the best situation.  I set mine on top of a beater cooking grate to hold them up next to the chicken. 

The minor source of heat is just for flavor.  I realized that one of the key flavor components of pollo a la brasa is the smoke created from the chicken fat/juices falling off the birds.  So I put a very small charcoal pile all the way down on the regular cooking grate.  Not a huge fire, just one big enough to be soaked with chicken juices for about 40 minutes before it's finally snuffed out.  This doesn't really add much heat to the fire (especially since it's constantly hit with liquids) but it does make some really yummy smoke.  When I figured this out I was that much closer to the real thing.