mercedes grubbs asopao de pollo

Mercedes Grubbs Asopao de Pollo

Description

My name is Maria Mercedes Grubb, and I was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico. My parents were part of a huge wave of Dominicans that moved to the island in the 70’s. My grandmother had a food stall in a small town in the Dominican Republic, and my parents earned a living with a hot dog cart in our hood. So I’m a third generation cook.

Ingredients

2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1 medium lemon, halved
5 cloves garlic, smashed
2 tablespoons coriander seed
2 dried bay leaves
4 tarragon or parsley stems
5 leaves culantro (recao) or stems from 1 bunch cilantro
12 cups chicken broth
6 leaves culantro (recao) or the stems from 1 medium bunch fresh cilantro
5 seeded ají dulce peppers, or mini sweet peppers
1/2 medium seeded Cubanelle pepper
5 cloves garlic
1/2 medium celery stalk
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon mild harissa paste
5 saffron threads
1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, more as needed
1/2 cup canned coconut milk
1 medium green plantain
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup raw long grain white rice
2 medium scallions, thinly sliced
1 large avocado, thinly sliced
Lime wedges
Tarragon and/or cilantro leaves, optional
Olive oil, for drizzling

Directions

Gather the ingredients.
Cut the bones from the chicken thighs and add them to a large Dutch oven or other heavy-duty pot. If the chicken thighs have skin, remove and discard, or save them for another purpose.
Cut the chicken thighs into bite-size pieces. Set aside.
Add the onion, lemon, garlic, coriander, bay leaves, tarragon or parsley stems, culantro, and chicken broth to the pot with the chicken bones. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 45 minutes.
Strain the stock through a fine mesh strainer, discarding the strainer's contents. Set the stock aside.