This Chicken Pochero recipe features chicken, saba bananas, chorizo, chickpeas, and a medley of vegetables cooked in a tomato-based sauce. It's a hearty, flavorful dish perfect for a comforting dinner any night of the week.
This Chicken Pochero recipe is a variation of the more traditional Pork Pochero.
Jump to:
Ingredients you'll need
Notes and substitutions
- Chicken: I used chicken thighs and legs, which remain juicy throughout cooking. However, you can choose any bone-in cut with or without the skin. Just steer clear of chicken breast, as it tends to dry out easily when slow-cooked. Other protein choices like beef or pork make a delicious variation.
- Chorizo de Bilbao: This is a flavorful Spanish sausage with its rich and spicy notes. You can substitute it with another hard or cured chorizo or even smoked sausage.
- Tomato Paste: A thick, concentrated form of tomatoes that adds a rich tomato flavor. You can substitute it with tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes and reduce the water specified in the recipe.
- Vegetables: I used chickpeas, carrots, yardlong beans, bokchoy, and cabbage. You can use any vegetables you like or have on hand. Peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, pechay, and chayote are all great options.
How to make this recipe
Step 1: Prepare the Chicken
Trim any excess fat from the chicken. Season generously with salt on both sides. Set aside.
Step 2: Sear Bananas and Carrots
In a 4.5-quart heavy-bottomed pot, heat some oil over medium-high heat. Briefly sear the saba bananas on both sides, making sure they don't become mushy. Transfer them to a plate.
Then, lightly brown the carrots on both sides. Transfer them to a plate.
Step 3: Sear the Chicken
Add more oil, if needed. Sear the chicken, with its skin side down first, until lightly browned on all sides. Work in batches to achieve a nice crust. Transfer them to a plate.
PRO TIP: For the best Pochero, sear the chicken and other ingredients like the vegetables and chorizo. This extra step helps lock in flavors for a deeper and more savory stew.
Step 4: Sear the Chorizo
Quickly sear the chorizo slices for about a minute to bring out their flavors. Once lightly browned, transfer to a plate.
Step 5: Sauté the Aromatics
Add more oil if needed and reduce to medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until softened.
Step 6: Saute the Tomato Paste
Add the tomato paste and cook until it caramelizes and turns darker, for a richer and more flavorful dish.
Step 7: Add Liquid and Seasonings
Pour in 2½ to 3 cups of water, depending on how thick or soupy you prefer the stew. Add the bay leaves, chicken base or bouillon, fish sauce, sugar, and some ground pepper.
Mix well, scraping up the fond (the browned bits) from the bottom of the pot for that extra flavor. Turn up the heat and bring the mixture to a boil.
Step 8: Simmer the Chicken
Once the mixture is boiling, add the chicken back into the pot. Cover and let it simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes or until tender.
Step 9: Add More Ingredients
Add the chorizo, carrots, and chickpeas. Let them cook for another 10 minutes or until the carrots are tender.
Step 10: Add Bananas and Greens
Add the bananas, yardlong beans, bok choy, and cabbage. Cover and cook for 5 minutes to allow them to soften slightly. Taste and adjust as necessary. Turn off the heat.
Serve your Chicken Pochero with steamed rice and enjoy! Store the leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days in the refrigerator, or freeze to extend their shelf life.
Recipe FAQs
Pochero, originally "puchero," is one of the Spanish-inspired Filipino stews that has found its place in our cuisine. Beef is the traditional choice, but chicken and pork are equally popular. In this Tagalog version, the meat is cooked with saba bananas, a medley of vegetables, chorizo, and chickpeas in a light tomato broth.
Visayan Pochero, unlike the Tagalog version, does not incorporate tomatoes or tomato sauce. It is typically a pork pochero recipe with a clear broth similar to Bulalo but includes saba bananas. Lemongrass is sometimes added for a fragrant touch. While Visayan Pochero often uses pork and occasionally beef, Bulalo uses beef shank with its flavorful marrow.
Absolutely! Chicken Pochero tastes even better the next day as the flavors meld together. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and reheat before serving. Just remember to add the greens when reheating to ensure they remain fresh and vibrant.
Try other Spanish-inspired dishes
- Estofado: Pork or chicken braised with brown sugar, soy sauce, and fried saba bananas in a tomato-based sauce.
- Caldereta: A hearty stew made of meat (often beef or goat) and vegetables, cooked in tomato sauce with liver spread.
- Relienong Manok (Stuffed Chicken): Deboned chicken marinated in soy sauce and calamansi, then stuffed with a variety of ingredients like ground meat, peas, and raisins.
- Rellenong Bangus (Stuffed Milkfish): Deboned milkfish stuffed with its own meat mixed with other ingredients, then baked or fried to perfection.
- Morcon: Rolled beef or pork filled with sausages, eggs, and pickles, then braised in a tomato-based sauce.
- Embutido: A Filipino-style meatloaf with ground pork, raisins, boiled eggs, and sausages.
- Paella: A festive Spanish rice dish cooked with saffron, various meats like chicken, chorizo, and seafood, and vegetables in a wide, shallow pan.
Other chicken recipes you may like
Did you make this recipe? I would love to know! Your feedback helps me make better recipes. Please rate, review, or comment below. Questions about this recipe are welcome, too!
Let's connect on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Twitter, and Youtube. Be sure to tag me when you try any of my recipes @recipesbynora!
📖 Recipe
Chicken Pochero
Equipment
- 4.5-quart Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot
Ingredients
- 2-2½ pounds bone-in chicken (3 legs and 3 thighs) see note
- 2-3 ripe saba bananas (saging na saba) cut into large chunks; sub: plantains
- 1 small carrot cut into large chunks; see note
- 2 chorizo de Bilbao cut into bite-sized pieces; see note
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 6 cloves of garlic minced
- ⅓ cup tomato paste see note
- 2½-3 cups water sub: chicken broth
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons chicken base or bouillon
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce adjust to taste
- 1 tablespoon sugar adjust to taste
- 1 cup chickpeas or garbanzo beans drained
- A bunch of yardlong beans or green beans cut into 2" sections; see note
- A bunch of bok choy ends trimmed and leaves separated; see note
- ½ small cabbage cut into wedges or chunks; see note
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Neutral oil (for searing and sautéing)
Instructions
- Trim any excess fat from the chicken. Season generously with salt on both sides. Set aside.
- In a pot, heat oil over medium-high heat. Briefly sear the bananas on both sides, making sure they don't become mushy. Transfer them to a plate.
- Next, lightly brown the carrots on both sides. Transfer them to a plate.
- Add more oil, if needed. Sear the chicken, with its skin side down first, until lightly browned on all sides. Work in batches to achieve a nice crust. Transfer them to a plate.
- Quickly sear the chorizo slices for about a minute to bring out their flavors. Once lightly browned, transfer to a plate.
- Add more oil if needed and reduce to medium heat. Sauté the onion and garlic until softened.
- Add the tomato paste and cook until it caramelizes and turns darker.
- Pour in 2½ to 3 cups of water, depending on how thick or soupy you prefer the stew. Add the bay leaves, chicken base or bouillon, fish sauce, sugar, and some ground pepper.
- Mix well, scraping up the fond (the browned bits) from the bottom of the pot for that extra flavor. Turn up the heat and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Once the mixture is boiling, add the chicken back. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 30 minutes or until tender.
- Add the chorizo, carrots, and chickpeas. Let them cook for another 10 minutes or until the carrots are tender.
- Add the bananas, yardlong beans, bok choy, and cabbage. Cover and cook for 5 minutes to allow them to soften slightly. Taste and adjust as necessary. Turn off the heat.
Notes
- Chicken: I used chicken thighs and legs, which remain juicy throughout cooking. However, you can choose any bone-in cut with or without the skin. Avoid chicken breast, as it tends to dry out easily when slow-cooked or stewed.
- Chorizo de Bilbao: This is a flavorful Spanish sausage with rich and spicy notes. Substitute it with another hard or cured chorizo or even smoked sausage.
- Tomato Paste: A thick, concentrated form of tomatoes that adds a rich tomato flavor. You can substitute it with tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes and reduce the water specified in the recipe.
- Vegetables: I used chick peas, carrots, yardlong beans, bok choy, and cabbage. You can use any vegetables you like or have on hand. Peas, potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, pechay, and chayote are all great options.
Elaine
This looks delicious but I noticed how Filipino stews are so similar.
Nora Reyes
Hi Elaine! I totally get where you're coming from! Filipino stews do have some similarities, but each one has its own distinct flavors and ingredients that make it special. Which one(s) is your favorite?