Best Spanish Chicken Stew [Easy Recipe!]

There is nothing like after a long day of work or study, being able to smell the fresh Spanish chicken stew. 

Of course, you may think that it will take hours to prepare a stew, but luckily the Spanish chicken stew recipe is the exception.

The Spanish-style chicken stew is a protagonist dish during Andalusian winters, because it is easy to make, takes less than an hour, and does not need any rare or expensive ingredients.

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Keep reading this article as I’ll show you how to make Spanish stew chicken completely from scratch, as well as other tips to customize it and make it fit your preferences and personal diet. 

Pssst…!!?? You can’t get enough of Spanish soup recipes? Have a look at my other posts: 

• Cocido Madrileno
• Homemade Spanish chicken soup
• Spanish ham and bean soup

Background of the Dish

The Spanish chicken stew is one of the oldest foods in southern Spain, even in all of Europe. 

However, it was in Andalusian kitchens where this dish was created, and the cooking consisted of cooking chicken meat and vegetables over low heat and for a long time.

This recipe, unlike other soups or stews, uses very little water, since the chicken and vegetables are cooked mainly in their own juices, making the flavor concentrated.

As time went by, Spanish chicken stew recipes reached all over the world thanks to the conquest of America, so you will find all kinds of versions of this recipe. 

Anyway, in this article we will talk about the Spanish Chicken stew, so you can’t miss it.

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Things You’ll Need for Spanish Chicken Stew

To make this wonderful stew chicken recipe you’ll only need a couple of ingredients. 

Honestly, the main ingredients are the chicken and the tomatoes, you can replace all the others and you will still get a yummy pollo estofado. 

Ingredients

• 1 medium-sized chicken (cut into pieces)
• 3 potatoes
• 1 cup (240ml) of water 
• 3 tomatoes
• 1/2 bell pepper
• 1 chili pepper
• 1 onion
• Celery leaves (only a handful)
• Salt to taste
• Ground black pepper
• Oregano powder to taste
• Vegetable oil

How to Make Spanish Chicken Stew – Step by Step Guide

1. Making this Spanish stewed chicken recipe is very simple. For the first step, put the tomatoes, onion, pepper, celery leaves, chili pepper, and a cup of water in a blender. Blend until you get a sauce, but let there be some vegetable chunks. 

2. Up next, clean and cut the chicken, then remove the skin. Grab a saucepan and seal the chicken there with a splash of oil. Add salt, pepper, and a little oregano powder. You can add other seasonings such as turmeric, smoked paprika, etc. 

3. Once the chicken is golden brown on all sides, add the sauce and a pinch of salt. Let it boil and lower the heat to half. Cover and cook for 15 minutes. If you don’t have a lid to cover the saucepan, then you can use a round-shaped baking tray. Because by covering it, you let the steam give the chicken a tender texture.  

4. In the meantime, peel the potatoes and cut them into pieces of any size of your choice (medium-sized cubes is the perfect one). After 15 minutes have passed, add the potatoes.

5. Cook over medium heat until the potatoes are ready, you can pinch them with a fork to check if they reached the desired texture. Remove from the heat and let it rest for 5 minutes. And that is it, the Spanish stew is ready, just serve it warm and enjoy. 

Substitution of Ingredients

Here you have the recipe for the classic Spanish chicken stew with potatoes, but there are dozens of replacements that you can make according to your personal taste or the ingredients that you have in your home. 

The vegetables are the easiest changes that you can make. You can replace the potato with sweet potato or even pumpkin. 

Besides that, you can add others, such as carrots, beet, or other kinds of bell peppers. 

If you are looking to enter the world of Andalusian cuisine, then I recommend that you also make other recipes such as the Spanish chicken empanada recipe, the Spanish chicken croquettes, and the Spanish Chicken Soup Recipe.

Tips on Serving Spanish Chicken Stew

The best part about making this Spanish chicken and potatoes stew is that you can either have it for lunch or dinner. 

Since it has potatoes and chicken, it is a pretty filling dish so the best thing you can do is to serve it on its own.

There is no need to make a side for this Spanish chicken because the potatoes already take on that role. 

However, you can boil other vegetables like carrots, beets, or sweet potatoes if you want a larger variety. 

If stews are your favorite dishes you can also try our Spanish oxtail stew, seafood stew, wholesome pork stew, or the nourishing Spanish lentils.

And of course, let’s not forget about the delicious and traditional Spanish lamb stew recipe.

Make sure you try other recipes with chicken and one of the best is the Spanish grilled chicken recipe, prepared just like Spaniards do.

How to Store Spanish Chicken Stew

This Spanish stew chicken can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days, and the flavor and texture won’t be affected. 

Just make sure to let it reach room temperature before storing it in a covered container (you can cover it with plastic wrap or a clean plastic bag).

On the contrary to what happens with other Spanish chicken recipes, you shouldn’t freeze this Spanish chicken stew, mostly due to the potatoes. 

They, as well as other root vegetables, don’t freeze well.

One thing that you can do is to freeze the chicken stew without the potatoes, and in this case, it’ll last up to 30 days.

Recipe Card: Spanish Chicken Stew

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