Pollo a la Brasa with Potatoes

I was looking at this Peruvian restaurant's menu. I've never had Peruvian food before, but I'm always up for trying new cuisines, so I was intrigued. I hadn't a clue what I'd order if I went to the restaurant, so I did a little research.

One of the least adventurous dishes was the pollo a la brasa (Peruvian roasted chicken). I thought it looked yummy so I went and looked up some recipes and came to this one. I don't know how authentic this is but it was indeed yummy. Of course I didn't follow the recipe exactly. I tried. I really did, but I hate water brines, so I didn't do that. Instead, I had planned on marinating the chicken over two nights rather than just one. But then I got impatient and wanted to eat this. Next time I'll marinate it for two nights because the flavour didn't really get all the way into the chicken. Oh wells.

And it's easier to roast a chicken after it's been cut into 8 parts, so that's what I did. Hah. :P

I think this can be a dish that I could just serve on plain white rice rather than the potatoes. Or wild rice. I love wild rice.....or a rice pilaf! Oh the possibilities...


Pollo a la Brasa with Potatoes
(serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
• 1/4 cup canola oil/extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp garlic salt
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 3 medium russet potatoes, cubed

Directions:

1. In a large Ziploc bag, combine oil, vinegar, garlic, chili powder, cumin, garlic salt, paprika, oregano and soy sauce. Toss in the chicken pieces and massage until well coated. Marinade in the fridge overnight (or 2 nights).
2. Preheat oven to 375F. 
3. Add potatoes into the Ziploc bag. Massage until potatoes are well coated. Pour everything from the Ziploc bag into a roasting pan, arranging chicken to rest on top of the potatoes, skin side up.
4. Bake for 45 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through (165F when tested with a thermometer). Rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.
5. Serve chicken with the potatoes and a side salad.

Update: You can always freeze the chicken pieces for up to 2 weeks in the freezer and then take it out the night before you want to bake it to defrost in the fridge.