Pollo encebollado (Chicken smothered in onion)

When I was a child, nothing could make me eat an onion... and now, I don't cook without it.

My parents would often take us out to eat to a Salvadoran restaurant and my mom would always get the "Pollo encebollado." Since I didn't like onion, I would never accept the offer to try some... and boy was that the biggest mistake. One day I was feeling like a rather adventurous twelve year old and decided to give it a try... wow. That bite flipped my palette, I never knew onion could taste so good. I consider this a 'core memory' because up until today I remember that pollo encebollado.

What is pollo encebollado?

Pollo ecebollado translates to 'chicken and onions' in English. The chicken is seasoned with staple items like mustard, Salsa Inglesa (Worcestershire sauce) and your preferred seasonings. It is then lightly fried until golden brown on each side and then combined with sautéed onions.

The interesting fact in all of this is that my mom didn't ever make it at home growing up, we only had it at this restaurant. So I had to dig around a bit to find recipes online and I found 'Cocinemos con Cristina' on YouTube to be the one that looked the most similar. Through this research I realized that everyone in El Salvador makes this their own way (as they should!), there were some recipes that required old bread or white wine, others suggested green bell peppers, etc. So I took the seasoning my tias use for the chicken and I incorporated some things from the recipes I found online... and I'm so proud of how it came out! It was finger licking good!

Ingredients:

• 2lbs of chicken bone in - I prefer to use dark meat so I used chicken thighs

• Mustard

• Salsa Inglesa or Worcestershire sauce

• 1 tsp cumin

• 1 tsp paprika

• 1/2 tbsp chicken bouillon

• 1 tsp oregano

• Garlic power to taste

• Pepper and salt to taste

• 1-2 onions

• 1/4 cup white wine

• 1/2 green bell pepper (optional)

• 1/2 of pan frances (French bread or bolillo)- preferably, hard. (Optional)

• 2 tbsp Vegetable oil

Instructions

1. Season your chicken and let it marinade over night or at least 30 mins in the fridge. Add mustard, Salsa Inglesa, cumin, paprika, chicken bouillon, garlic, oregano, pepper and salt, and rub the chicken well. Feel free to add or substitute any items you don't like.

2. Peel and cut your onion into onion rings. If you want to add green bell pepper cut into thin slices. Add mustard, salsa inglesa, salt and pepper to taste to the chopped veggies and mix it well.

3. In a frying pan or sauce pan add the oil and set it at medium heat. Once the oil is hot add in your chicken and allow both sides to get golden brown. If you choose to leave the skin on make sure it gets crispy! Once the chicken is done, set it to the side. If you don't want to fry the chicken, you can air fry it! I did this with half of my thighs and they came out delicious.

4. In the same pan add your chopped vegetables and sauté until the onions are translucent. Once the onions are translucent add the white wine and add your chicken on top. Cover and let it cook on medium heat for about 10-15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked to 165 degrees internally.

This is a quick meal that can be cooked any day of the week. Serve it with rice of your choice and a fresh salad. Hope you enjoy it and as always learn the process and make it your own! The video recipe can be found @Flourishwithg on both Instagram and TikTok.