Aji De Gallina

This is another popular Peruvian dish that my empleada here in Arequipa taught me to make.  She didn't use any measurements, so I'm just guessing on those!

Ingredients:
1 cup Rice
2-3 chicken breasts, boiled in water.
1/2 cup of salsa ocopo (aji amarillo sauce cooked and prepared with seasonings and a little sugar) or "Tari" sauce
1/4 cup of fresh aji amarillo or 1/2 of a small packet of aji from Canasta.
4 eggs
5 small potatoes
4 cloves of minced garlic, separated
1 can of evaporated milk
10-12 slices of white bread
2-3 Tbsp. vegetable oil, separated
salt
walnuts (optional)
1/2 onion, diced finely
1 cup milk

Preparation
1.  Simmer the aji and salsa ocopo in 1-2 Tbsp oil with the onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic until it gets a bit thick and separates from the oil a bit.
2.  While the sauce is simmering, cut the bread into large chunks and remove the crust.  Put bread in a bowl and cover with the evaporated milk.  Let it sit for a bit.
3. Boil the potatoes and eggs (to hard boil them) together in a pot of water.
4. Put 2 cloves of minced garlic and a Tablespoon or so of vegetable oil in the bottom of the rice cooker, and turn on the frying setting to heat the garlic and oil for a couple minutes.  Then add the rice and the amount of water called for per cup of rice on the package, and set the rice cooker to the cook setting.
5.  Shred the chicken and add it to the aji mixture.  Add 1 1/2 cup of the water that the chicken boiled in, and bring it to a boil.
6.  Blend the bread mixture in a blender, then add it to the aji mixture, and bring it to a boil and simmer for a 20 minutes.  Add milk as it thickens up.
7.  After potatoes have gotten soft, peel them and slice them in thick slices.
8.  Peel the eggs and slice into 4 quadrants.
9.  Serve the chicken aji mixture over top of a few slices of potato and topped with a few slices of egg.  Serve with a side of rice.

Tomatada (Peruvian Recipe)

Our sweet Peruvian empleada, Celia, taught me to make this dish.  It's delicious!

Ingredients:
4 large tomatoes, peeled and pulp removed
1 clove of garlic, minced
1-2 tsp. Salt
3 tablespoons tomato sauce
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 Tbsp. Vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. cumin
4 thinly sliced steaks
salt and pepper
Fine bread Crumbs mixed w/ some flour and garlic powder.
oil
1 1/4 cup water, divided
2 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 onion, sliced
4 potatoes
1 tsp. oregano
Rice, prepared according to package directions.

Preparation:
1.  Heat garlic in a large pot with some oil.  Add tomato, 1 cup water, tomato sauce, pepper, vinegar, sugar, and cumin.  Simmer, covered, until creamy.  Add more water if need be.
2. Salt and pepper the steak on both sides, then put the bread crumb mixture on both sides of it.
3.  Heat some oil in a frying pan and fry the steaks until browned on both sides.
4. Add soy sauce to the tomato mixture and simmer covered for 5 more minutes, then add onion and oregano.
5.  Remove some sauce, place meat in the sauce, and cover with the sauce you removed.  Salt and pepper a bit and then add 1/4 cup water and cover and simmer to finish cooking the meat.
6.  While meat mixture is simmering, peel the potatoes and slice in 1/4 inch thick slices.  Fry them in a frying pan with enough oil to just about cover them.  Fry on each side until starting to brown (about 3-4 minutes total).  Dry potatoes on paper towel after fried, and then salt them.

Serve meat with sauce drizzled over top, and covered with potato slices and then more sauce.  Serve with rice.

Enjoy!