Name: Locro de gallina
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 126 min
Total time: 146 min
Cuisine: Peruvian cuisine
Ingredients: 1200 g stewing hen pieces, bone-in, skin removed; approximately 650 g edible cooked flesh. Mature hen; weight includes bones; 1800 ml water, measured. All for hen broth; reduce by simmering; 460 g white potatoes, peeled, cut in large pieces. Hold shape; 380 g yellow potatoes, peeled, quartered. Partly break down to thicken; 4 g fine salt, measured. 3 g broth, 1 g dressing; 1 g ground black pepper, measured. Season broth; 100 g red onion, sliced into thick feathers. For dressing; 38 g ají mirasol paste, from dried yellow ají. Not ají panca red paste; 18 ml vegetable oil, measured. For sautéing; 6 g garlic, crushed. For dressing; 8 g flat-leaf parsley, chopped. Finish each bowl; 1 g ground cumin, measured. Dressing

Yield 4 portions

Prep time 20 minutes

Cook time 126 minutes

Passive time 0 minutes

Total time 146 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Locro de gallina — Peruvian home recipe

Locro de gallina in Huánuco is a thick, hot hen-and-potato soup, distinct from the pumpkin-based dishes also called locro in other parts of the Andes. The hen is simmered to make a generous broth. Yellow potato is allowed to break down slightly for body while chunks of white potato give a more defined bite.

In this yellow-ají presentation, the dressing is cooked separately from the broth. Dried yellow ají mirasol gives the oil and onion a deep, rounded chilli flavour without the tomato-like character of a red sauce. The spoonful of dressing is placed over each bowl, so it remains identifiable rather than disappearing into a uniform soup.

A mature stewing hen needs longer cooking than a supermarket broiler chicken. Check for both safe poultry temperature and meat tenderness: reaching the safe endpoint does not by itself make a mature hen tender. The broth should taste of the meat and potatoes, while the dressing is aromatic and the potato pieces still have recognizable edges.

Ingredients

Hen broth and potatoes

1200 g stewing hen pieces, bone-in, skin removed; approximately 650 g edible cooked flesh. Mature hen; weight includes bones
1800 ml water, measured. All for hen broth; reduce by simmering
460 g white potatoes, peeled, cut in large pieces. Hold shape
380 g yellow potatoes, peeled, quartered. Partly break down to thicken
4 g fine salt, measured. 3 g broth, 1 g dressing
1 g ground black pepper, measured. Season broth

Yellow ají dressing

100 g red onion, sliced into thick feathers. For dressing
38 g ají mirasol paste, from dried yellow ají. Not ají panca red paste
18 ml vegetable oil, measured. For sautéing
6 g garlic, crushed. For dressing
8 g flat-leaf parsley, chopped. Finish each bowl
1 g ground cumin, measured. Dressing

Method

Start the hen broth.Put the 1200 g bone-in stewing hen pieces in a large pot with all 1800 ml water, 3 g salt and 1 g pepper. Bring to a gentle simmer and skim any foam from the surface. The broth is simmering steadily with no vigorous rolling boil and surface scum has been lifted away.
Tenderise the hen slowly.Partly cover the pot and simmer gently for 85 minutes. Check a thick meaty piece without touching the bone with a thermometer and continue simmering if the hen still resists a fork. The meat can be eased from its bone with a fork and the broth has a full poultry aroma. The thickest edible hen portion must reach at least 74 °C.
Simmer both kinds of potato.Add the 460 g white-potato pieces and 380 g yellow-potato quarters to the broth. Simmer for 22 minutes, occasionally crushing a few yellow-potato edges with a spoon. The yellow potato begins to break into the broth while the white pieces hold their shape and feel tender.
Cook the ají dressing separately.In a skillet heat all 18 ml vegetable oil over medium heat. Stir in 100 g sliced onion and cook for 5 minutes, then add 6 g garlic, 38 g ají mirasol paste, 1 g cumin and the remaining 1 g salt; continue for 4 minutes. The onion bends easily and the ají loses its raw edge without becoming dark or burnt.
Serve broth and dressing together.Ladle equal quantities of hen, both potatoes and broth into four deep bowls. Spoon one quarter of the onion-ají dressing on each serving and finish with the 8 g chopped parsley. Each bowl contains a hen portion, distinct pale potato pieces and a visible yellow chilli dressing.

Practical

Success points

Use an actual stewing hen when cooking under this name; broiler chicken cooks faster and changes the broth. Yellow potato contributes thickening; white potato supplies recognizable pieces.

Practical guidance

Use a pot spacious enough to hold the hen without boiling dry, and keep the simmer gentle so the broth remains clear enough to show the potato pieces. The broth may be made ahead; cool it quickly in shallow containers, refrigerate within 2 hours, and keep at 4 °C or colder. Refrigerated cooked leftovers may be used within 3–4 days and must be reheated to 74 °C. If using a younger chicken instead of stewing hen, the cooking time and flavour change substantially and the result is an adaptation; do not follow the 85-minute tenderness expectation blindly.

Control points

The hen is safe but chewyMature hen needs time beyond minimum safe temperature. Keep it at a gentle simmer until a fork separates the meat.
The soup is thinThe yellow potato has not released its starch. Crush several cooked yellow-potato pieces back into the liquid without breaking the white pieces.

Nutrition per serving (estimated)

Serving size1 of 4 equal plated portions
Calories468 kcal
Carbohydrate40 g
Protein41 g
Fat16 g
Fibre6 g
Sodium530 mg

Allergens and food safety

No major regulated allergens inherent in the listed ingredients; check commercially prepared ají paste for labelled allergens. Maintain separation between raw meat or fish, clean equipment and ready-to-eat ingredients; wash hands and tools after contact with raw animal food. Chill perishable food promptly in shallow covered containers at 4 °C or below and within 2 hours; avoid prolonged room-temperature standing. Cooked leftovers, when permitted by the recipe-specific guidance, must be reheated to 74 °C. The thickest edible hen portion must reach at least 74 °C.

Closing

Result: Huánuco-style hen-and-potato soup combines a slowly simmered broth with a tender yellow-and-white potato mixture and a separately cooked ají mirasol onion dressing.
Decisive control: Use an actual stewing hen when cooking under this name; broiler chicken cooks faster and changes the broth.