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Aguadito De Pollo (Peruvian Chicken Soup)

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This Aguadito De Pollo (Peruvian Chicken Soup) recipe is easy to make, and full of the best fresh and delicious flavors, including lots and lots of cilantro!

Hey hey! It’s new soup day!

Well, this one is at least a new favorite of mine. Have you ever tried aguadito before? It’s basically the Peruvian version of chicken and rice soup, and it is muy delicioso. The base of the soup is the basic chicken, rice and veggies that we all know and love. But the Peruvian version adds an extra fresh and fun kick by having you puree a ton of cilantro, chile peppers, onions, garlic and lime juice in a blender. Then just before serving, you stir in the cilantro mixture in with the chicken and rice, and — poof — it instantly turns this classic into a show-stopping vibrant, fresh, and flavorful green soup! (And yes, it really is that green. It practically glows!) ?

So if you happen to be feeling all the spring vibes lately — but mayyyy not be quite ready to transition out of winter “soup season” just yet (I’m a 365-soup girl myself ) — I feel like this recipe is the perfect bridge between seasons. It’s definitely been the delicious bridge between mine this year.

Let’s make some.

Aguadito (Peruvian Chicken Soup) Recipe | 1-Minute Video


Alright, so let’s talk about this magical cilantro sauce that takes this simple chicken and rice soup from classic…to fantastic. ? ?

Before you start making your soup base, begin by sauteeing some poblano pepper and onions and garlic and aji amarillo paste (or a serrano or jalapeño pepper) in your stock pot until they’re soft and cooked.

Transfer them to the blender, and let them sit and cool down a bit while you make the rest of the soup. Then, once your soup has been simmering for awhile, the potatoes and rice are nearly cooked and ready to go, finish up that sauce! Just add a bunch of fresh cilantro leaves (some stems are ok) and lime juice to the blender…

…then puree the heck out of it until the mixture is super-smooth (about 1 minute). Once the soup is ready to go, stir in the cilantro mixture at the last minute until combined. Garnish with extra cilantro and green onions…

…and serve!

See? SO GREEN! And seriously, SO GOOD.

Also, if you want, you can totally make it SO SPICY. The traditional Peruvian version of this soup uses aji chiles (or much easier to find in the U.S. — this aji amarillo paste) as the heat in this soup, and you can add as much or as little as you’d like. Or if you can’t find the paste, feel free to just add in a serrano or jalapeño pepper. (Or skip the chile peppers altogether, if you’re not into spicy food.)

However you make it,

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Aguadito De Pollo (Peruvian Chicken and Rice Soup)

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 47 reviews
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 8 -10 servings 1x

Description

Learn how to make traditional Aguadito De Pollo (Peruvian Chicken and Rice Soup) with this delicious and easy recipe.


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil (or olive oil)
  • 1 large poblano pepper, cored and diced
  • 1 small white onion, peeled and diced
  • 1 tablespoon aji amarillo paste (or 1 serrano or jalapeño pepper, cored and diced)
  • 5 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 6 cups chicken stock, divided
  • 2 cups shredded or diced cooked chicken
  • 1 pound Yukon gold potatoes, diced
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
  • 1/2 cup white or brown rice
  • 1/2 cup peas
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves
  • juice of 1 lime
  • optional garnishes: extra chopped fresh cilantro leaves, thinly-sliced green onions

Instructions

  1. Heat oil in a large stock pot over medium-high heat.  Add the diced poblano pepper and white onion, and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onion is softened and translucent.  Stir in the aji amarillo paste (or diced serrano or jalapeño) and garlic.  Continue sautéing for 1-2 more minutes, until the garlic is fragrant.  Transfer the entire mixture to a large blender, and set aside to cool.
  2. Return the stockpot to the heat.  Add 5 cups chicken stock, cooked chicken, potatoes, carrots, rice, peas, cumin, and stir to combine.  Bring the mixture to a simmer.  Then reduce heat to medium-low so that the soup maintains a low simmer.  Cover partially and cook, stirring occasionally, for 25-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork-tender and the rice is cooked.
  3. Once the soup is ready, add the cilantro leaves and lime and remaining 1 cup chicken stock to the blender along with the pepper mixture.  Pureé for 1-2 minutes, or until the mixture is completely smooth.
  4. Stir the cilantro mixture into the soup.  Taste, and season with a generous pinch (or more) of salt and black pepper as needed.
  5. Serve immediately, topped with your desired garnishes.

Notes

Feel free to also add in 1/2 cup whole kernel corn if you’d like.  And some traditional recipes also add in diced red bell pepper, which you’re welcome to add.  Also, if the soup is too thick to your liking, feel free to add in an extra cup of chicken stock.

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100 comments on “Aguadito De Pollo (Peruvian Chicken Soup)”

  1. Really good and very easy to make. Found aji amarillo sauce at Whole Foods, so I used that. I don’t eat meat, but nothing was lacking by leaving out the chicken and subbing vegetable broth. Really liked the brightness that the cilantro and lime sauce add to an otherwise very simple soup. Yum!! Will make again.






  2. Delish! Made it vegetarian (no chicken) and it was so flavorful. Definitely a keeper!






    • Perfect for my soup-loving family members. I served it to friends (one from Mexico, one from Peru) and both liked it. I served to my father-in-law (from Guatemala). He ate FOUR bowls and this was his first time trying it!!
      I placed it in my Instant Pot for a few hours, left for winter fun, and came back to this soup. It’s a keeper. Thanks!






  3. Hello,

    Very tasty recipe.

    I made this soup just for myself so, needless to say, I have tons leftover. I figured this would happen so I combined just enough of the chicken/veggie broth with the green liquid (cilantro/onion etc.) to make a serving for myself. Would you know the best way to store the soup in the fridge?

    Thank you for the advice and also for sharing your recipe with us!

  4. Delicious comfort food on a nice gloomy day here in souther California.

  5. Can you freeze it????
    Thank you.

  6. What is the nutritional information for this soup? Thank you

  7. Superb! This deserves six stars. I made the stock from scratch and added corn, as a few other reviewers suggested. This will be a new staple. It is so light and fresh tasting, but hearty enough for winter nights. Thanks SO much for the recipe!






  8. This was SO good. I thought even better the next day. I omitted rice and added a quarter pound extra potatoes as that’s what I had on hand- and it was so well flavored. Thank you!






  9. This looks amazing and I want to try it, but my husband can’t eat a ton of spice. I love it though. So trying to decide exactly how HOT this soup is in terms of spice?

    • I made it with one poblano (no aji or jalapeno, my store was out of both) and I found it quite mild. Hope that helps (:






  10. I absolutely loved this, so simple and fresh too! I will definitely be making this often!






  11. Delicious with a great balance of heat and lime. First time making aguadito and will definitely make again!






  12. If “comfort” had a taste….it would taste like this soup.






  13. You should try fish aguadito, is even better.

  14. I just finished my second bowl of this delicious and beautiful soup. I’d never used aji Amarillo before, so I started with a half tbsp and ended up adding another 1 and 1/2 tbsp. It adds a lovely warmth but I didn’t find it too spicy/hot at all. For those who are concerned about the heat of the Aji, I will say that while I enjoy highly flavored foods, I’m not a big fan of spicy/hot flavoring. Hope that helps. Also, I added cooked rice to my bowl because I didn’t want to cloud the broth by cooking the rice with the soup.






  15. Very good, I kept the cooked rice separate and just put some in a bowl and the soup on top , as someone had suggested.






  16. I’m eating my first batch of this soup right now, and it is so good! I subbed in a can of chickpeas instead of chicken, and cooked my rice on the side and added it to each bowl, but everything else was as written. All it needed at the end was a dash of salt and pepper. Next time, I`ll try it with chicken.
    This one is going in the rotation…. Thank you!!






  17. To begin with I would like to comment on how you write, I appreciated how you laid out the recipe and the story. I loved the flavors and plan on purchasing the aji amarillo paste. The brightness of the cilantro and lime was refreshing. I wish I would have made the rice separate but I did not, my soup is quite hearty now. Next time I will separate the two. Two thumbs way up.






  18. This soup is absolutely delicious!






  19. Excellent and tasty.






  20. This came out delicious. Easy to freeze and take for lunch.






  21. My first attempt. Followed the recipe to the letter. It is unbelievably delicious. Be sure and find the specific orange Chile paste. It is on Amazon, and n some Mexican markets. Yum!






  22. Amazing!! One of new favorites!






  23. Made the soup tonight and it is amazing! It is so savory and fresh at the same time. Very cilantro forward which is great for my family.






  24. This was so tasty. My Dad LOVED it, so we’ll be back again. Thank you for sharing!






  25. Stumbled upon this recipe a couple years ago, and I keep coming back to it — it’s become a winter staple for me!