Peruvian · main

Arroz Chaufa de Pollo

Arroz Chaufa de Pollo reads umami 8.0, richness 6.5 and citrus 5.4 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Peruvian main, about 24 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.

The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10

The measured notes (of 18)

Umami 8.0 · Richness 6.5 · Citrus 5.4 · Salinity 5.0 · Sourness 4.8 · Nutty 3.6 · Allium 3.0 · Funk & Ferment 2.7 · Heat 2.2 · Warm Spice 2.2 · Sweetness 2.1 · Herbaceous 1.7 · Fruity 1.1 · Bitterness 1.0 · Floral 0.7 · Earthy 0.7

What's in it (13)

Time & effort: about 24 min · effort: involved

Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 317.3 kcal, 7.2 g protein, 16.3 g fat, 35.6 g carbs

Dietary: Contains meat · Contains seafood · Contains egg — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.

How it's cooked (8 steps)

  1. Chaufa is a chifa dish, not a Chinese one: Cantonese cooks who came to Peru in the 1850s kept the wok and the sillao and picked up the ají amarillo and the lime. Both halves have to show or it is just fried rice.
  2. The rice must be cold and dry. Cook it the day before, spread it on a tray and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator overnight so the surface starch sets; warm rice steams in the wok and turns to paste. Break up any clumps with wet fingers before you start.
  3. Cut the chicken in 2 cm dice, mince the kion very fine, and slice the cebollita china keeping whites and greens in separate piles. Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt. Have everything within arm's reach of the stove, because from here the cooking takes six minutes and there is no pausing.
  4. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a wok over medium-high until it just smokes, pour in the egg and let it set undisturbed into a thin omelette, about 2 minutes. Slide it out, roll it like a cigar and cut it into ribbons.
  5. Add the remaining oil and take the heat to high. Sear the chicken in a single layer without stirring for a full minute so it browns, then toss and cook 3 minutes more until the edges are properly coloured. Add the kion and the white of the cebollita china and stir-fry 30 seconds, no longer, until they smell sweet.
  6. Add the cold rice and toss hard for 3 minutes, pressing it against the hot metal, until every grain is separate and audibly hot. Pour the sillao down the hot side of the wok rather than onto the rice so it caramelises on the way in, then the oyster sauce, white pepper and ají amarillo paste, and toss to colour everything evenly.
  7. Splash the pisco around the rim and let it hiss away, about 30 seconds. Off the heat, fold in the sesame oil, the egg ribbons and the green tops. Serve immediately with lime wedges — the squeeze at the table is the Peruvian half of the dish.
  8. Substitutions: Shaoxing wine can stand in for the pisco; online can stand in for the ají amarillo paste.

Dishes with a similar flavor shape

Keep reading: what umami, richness, citrus mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.

See how this dish fits your palate — take the short taste test →

Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.