Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken with Green Sauce
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Enjoy tender, juicy Peruvian-style roast chicken drizzled with a spicy and irresistibly good green sauce.
This is my take on Pollo a la Brasa, the delicious roast chicken made popular by so many Peruvian restaurants. The chicken is first marinated in olive oil, lime juice, garlic and spices, and then oven-roasted until tender, juicy and crisp-skinned. The accompanying green sauce, which gets its color from cilantro and jalapeño peppers, is spicy, creamy and downright delectable. You can put it on virtually everything, and it even doubles as a fabulous dip or salad dressing.
What you’ll need to make Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken
Before we get to the recipe, a few words on buying a whole chicken. In the poultry department, you’re likely to find birds labeled “broilers,” “roasters” and “fryers.” These labels are based on the weight of the bird, and are meant to suggest a method of cooking. This recipe calls for a four-pound chicken, which is typically considered a “fryer.” This might seem strange since we’re roasting but don’t worry about it — all of these chickens can be used in recipes interchangeably.
How to make Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken
Begin by making the marinade. Combine the lime juice, olive oil, salt, pepper, sugar, paprika, cumin, and oregano in a blender or mini food processor.
Blend until smooth.
Using your fingers or a wooden spoon, loosen the skin over the breasts and legs of the chicken.
Spoon 2/3 of the marinade under the skin.
And rub the rest over top. Place the chicken in a bowl and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and set the chicken on a rack in a roasting pan. I like to tuck the wings underneath the bird and tie the legs together so the bird holds its shape.
Roast the chicken for 20 minutes, until the skin is golden, and then turn the heat down to 375 degrees and roast for about an hour and ten minutes more. Let the chicken rest, covered with foil, for about 20 minutes before carving.
While the chicken marinates, make the green sauce (recipe adapted from the Serious Eats Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt).
Simply combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, cilantro, jalapeños, garlic, lime juice salt and pepper in a blender or food processor.
And process until smooth. With the motor running, drizzle in the olive oil. It will seem thin at first but, don’t worry, it will thicken up as it sits.
Keep in mind that the heat in the sauce comes from the ribs and seeds in the jalapeño peppers. I use about half of the seeds and ribs for a medium-hot sauce. If you’re worried about the heat, you can always leave them out at first and then blend them in to taste. (Also, be sure to wash your hands well after handling hot peppers, and do not touch your eyes while working with them.)
Transfer the sauce to a bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish the sauce with a sprig cilantro, if desired, and serve with the roasted chicken.
Note: The green sauce in this recipe is adapted from one of my favorite columns, the Serious Eats Food Lab by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt.
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Peruvian-Style Roast Chicken with Green Sauce
Enjoy tender, juicy Peruvian-style roast chicken drizzled with a spicy and irresistibly good green sauce.
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lime juice, from 2 limes
- 4 large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 4 pound whole chicken
For the Green Sauce
- 3 jalapeño chili peppers, seeded if desired (I use about half the seeds for a medium-hot sauce), and roughly chopped (see note)
- 1 cup packed fresh cilantro leaves
- 2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- ½ cup mayonnaise, best quality such as Hellmann's
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice, from one lime
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
For the Chicken
- Combine all of the ingredients except the chicken in a blender or mini food processor, and blend until smooth. Remove the giblets from the inside of the chicken and pat the outside of the chicken dry with paper towels; place in a bowl, breast side up with the legs facing you. Using the handle of a wooden spoon or your fingers, loosen the skin from the flesh over the breasts and legs, being careful not to tear the skin or push all the way through (you want the marinade to stay inside the bird). Spoon about ⅔ of the marinade evenly underneath the skin, and spread the remaining ⅓ evenly over the skin. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position, and preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line a roasting pan with aluminum foil for easy clean-up. Spray a rack (preferably a v-shape) with non-stick cooking spray and place the chicken on top. Tie the legs together with kitchen string. Roast for 20 minutes, until the skin is golden. Turn the heat down to 375 degrees, and continue to roast for about an hour and ten minutes more, or until the juices run clear when you cut between the leg and thigh. (Keep an eye on it -- if it's browning too quickly, cover it loosely with foil.) Tent the chicken with foil and let rest for about 20 minutes. Tilt the chicken over the roasting pan to release the juices, then transfer to a cutting board. Carve the chicken and serve with green sauce.
For the Green Sauce
- Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a blender or food processor and blend into a smooth sauce. With the motor running, open lid and slowly drizzle in olive oil. It will seem very runny at this point but, don't worry, it will thicken up as it sits. Transfer the sauce to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
- Note: Be sure to wash your hands well after handling hot peppers, and do not touch your eyes while working with them.
- Note: The nutritional information does not include the green sauce.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 614
- Fat: 43 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 7 g
- Sugar: 3 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 49 g
- Sodium: 694 mg
- Cholesterol: 340 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Absolutely delicious!!!! The Peruvian chicken was cooked to perfection!! I let the chicken marinate overnight. The longer it marinates the more succulent the flavor of the meat. Don’t alter the ingredients it was on point!!!
Hi, Jenn. I made this before and it was a big hit! Any reheating suggestions or recommendations if I’m making this a day ahead? Thanks!
Hi Ann, Glad you like it! I’d recommend reheating it in a 300° oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until hot in the middle. That will also crisp up the skin a bit.
Hi Jenn,
This recipe is amazing. I would love to try it in a Traeger smoker. Could you tell me what temp and how long I should smoke either a whole chicken or chicken thighs with bone. Thank you!
Glad you like it, Anna! I don’t have a smoker or know much about them, so unfortunaately I don’t can’t be much help — sorry!
Phenomenal recipe! I made this last night for my husband’s birthday and the chicken was absolutely delicious! Didn’t think I would enjoy the sauce as I’m not a fan of coriander but I loved it. We had the basmati cilantro rice pilaf, curried roasted carrots and springtime sauteed asparagus & peas for sides and my my goodness, it was all divine. Love your recipe book and this blog. I come back to them again and again. Thank you!
Sounds like a nice birthday dinner; so glad everyone enjoyed it! 🙂
Let me start with two words — Simply Outstanding!
The chicken was tender and flavorful and the sauce was outstanding. My wife, who is not a fan of really spicy food. found the sauce to be excellent.
A tip of the hat to Jenn — the instructions are perfect. In fact, the finished product looked like the pictures! The tips that are included are really helpful.
Score it Five Stars!
Hi Jenn… would love to make this recipe, however, my husband is not a fan of cilantro (I love it, tho). Anyway, can I substitute flat leaf parsley for the cilantro in the sauce? Would this work? Love all your recipes. Thanks.
Yes, flat-leaf parsley will work in place of the cilantro. Hope you enjoy (and glad you like the recipes)!
Hi! Made the chicken and sauce for dinner this evening. It was incredible. My husband and I gobbled up almost the entire chicken! We couldn’t stop eating… And Oh My… the sauce. Excellent!! (Although I did think it must be wonderful with cilantro 😉 Next time I will make the sauce with parsley for my husband and a separate sauce with cilantro for me. Yes! There will be a (many) next time!!! We had this with a huge salad and made a batch of your Naan. Thank you so much for the wonderful recipes!
Hi, Jenn. I made this before and it was a big hit! Any reheating suggestions or recommendations if I’m making this a day ahead? Thanks!
Made this tonight for our first dinner guests in a long time and it was a HUGE hit. The chicken was amazing, but the sauce killed. This will definitely be made again. I used a spatchcocked chicken. I also made the Mexican rice and the green beans that were recommended and they were also well received, especially the rice. Jenn’s recipes always deliver. One of our guests asked me to send a link to Once Upon a Chef
Jenn, could I do this with a spatchcock chicken? Thank you.
Hi M, I haven’t tried a spatchcocked version of this, a few other readers have commented that they’ve tried it with success. I’d love to hear how it turns out if you try it!
I just made this recipe with a spatchcocked chicken and it was perfect. One of my kids said it was the best chicken ever!
So glad it worked out. And you can’t get much better than a comment like that from you kid! 🙂
I saw this recipe after I had bought skinless chicken breasts for a family dinner. I thought the recipe sounded yummy, so I marinated the chicken breasts whole for about 8 hours, and then cut them up to make kabobs with red bell pepper and red onions. My family loved, loved this recipe! The green sauce is amazing! I can hardly wait to try it using a whole chicken!
The green sauce was really good! Is there something I can do to make the sauce a little thicker?
Your green sauce tastes like Lima’s chicken( in the DC area) green sauce which is the bomb! They also serve an amazing “yellow sauce”…..would love for you to duplicate that one! Thanks again for another great recipe Jenn!
Hi Deb, If you stick it in the fridge, it will definitely thicken up. Also, feel free to replace the lime juice with some zest to cut back on the liquid. And I don’t have a recipe for yellow sauce, but I think it’s made with Aji pepper paste, mayonnaise, and garlic. Hope that helps!
I made this yesterday and it was a HUGE hit. We devoured the whole chicken in probably less than 15 minutes. I did not use seeds in my jalapeno sauce and it did not have enough of a kick for me. Do you have any suggestions for how many of the seeds to add to make it a “moderate” spiciness? Thank you for this amazing recipe! It will definitely become a staple!
Glad you enjoyed it! To make the sauce spicier, you could use the seeds from one of the jalapeños. Because jalapeños/seeds vary in terms of their level of heat, however, if you want to go with something more predictable, you could add Tabasco or cayenne pepper to the sauce. Hope that helps!