A classic Ajiaco recipe made with vegetables, spices, chicken, herbs and served with capers and cream. This Colombian chicken soup is thick, comforting and filling.
What is Ajiaco?
There are different versions of Ajiaco Bogotano o Santafereño, but it’s a soup usually made with chicken, three kinds of potatoes, corn and an herb called guascas. This herb gives the soup a wonderful flavor. It is very important to use guascas and papa criolla as they are the key ingredients in this dish.
For me, Ajiaco Santafereño is a feel-good comfort food and I like to serve it with avocado on the side. In Colombia Ajiaco is traditionally cooked in clay pots like the one I used in the pictures, but if you don't own one, just use a regular large pot to make this popular Colombian soup.
Each region of Colombia has it own specialties and characteristic dishes. For example, in the capital of the country Bogotá; Ajiaco is a very popular dish. Comforting, filling and absolutely delicious makes this Colombian chicken soup the perfect meal during the cold weather.
What you Need to Make this Recipe
Chicken: I like to use bone in chicken breast to add more flavor to the soup, but feel free to use boneless if you prefer.
Water: You can replace it for chicken or vegetable broth.
Herbs: you need guascas to make ajiaco. I find them dried in small bags online here in the United States, but in Colombia you will find them fresh. I also like to add fresh cilantro to my soup, but if you don't like the flavor just omit it.
Vegetables: You need three different kinds of potatoes to make this soup (red, white and small yellow potatoes (papa criolla) an Andean potato. If you don't have papa criolla, you can replace it with small yellow potatoes. Garlic, corn and Scallions give extra flavor to this dish.
To serve this soup you will need heavy cream and capers.
How to Make this Recipe
In a large pot, place the chicken, corn, chicken bouillon, cilantro, scallions, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook for about 30 to 35 minutes, until chicken is cooked and tender. Remove the chicken and set aside.
Continue cooking the corn for about 15 more minutes. Discard green onions and add red potatoes, white potatoes, and the guascas. Cook for 15 more minutes.
Uncover and add the frozen papa criolla and simmer for 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper.
Shred the chicken breast and return to the pot. Serve the Ajiaco hot with capers and heavy cream on the side.
How to Serve this Soup?
Ajiaco can be eaten for lunch or dinner and will keep you full and satisfied. I like to served it with avocado and a green salad on the side. Some people like to serve it with white rice.
Cooking Tips
You can find dried guascas on Amazon.
In the USA yo can find frozen papa criolla in Latin markets.
You can shred the chicken breasts with two forks, but you can also add the cooked chicken breasts to a mixer with a paddle attachment and shred it on low speed.
More Chicken Soup Recipes
Cilantro-Lime Rice and Chicken Soup
Sancocho de Gallina (Chicken or Hen Sancocho)
Chicken Noodle Soup (Sopa de Pollo con Pasta)
Caldo de Pollo con Papas (Chicken Broth with Potato Soup)
Sopa de Arroz con Pollo (Chicken and Rice Soup)
Colombian Ajiaco Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 chicken breast skin removed
- 12 cups water
- 3 ears fresh corn cut into 2 pieces
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 chicken bouillon cubes
- 3 scallions
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 3 tablespoon chopped cilantro
- 2 cups papa criolla Andean Potato
- 3 medium white potatoes peeled and sliced
- 3 medium red potatoes peeled and sliced
- ⅓ cup guascas
- 1 cup heavy cream for serving
- 1 cup capers for serving
Instructions
- In a large pot, place the chicken, corn, chicken bouillon, cilantro, scallions, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and cook for about 30 to 35 minutes, until chicken is cooked and tender. Remove the chicken and set aside.
- Continue cooking the corn for about 15 more minutes. Discard green onion and add red potatoes, white potatoes, and the guascas. Cook for 15 more minutes.
- Uncover and add the frozen papa criolla and simmer for 15 minutes, season with salt and pepper.
- Shred the chicken breast and return to the pot. Serve the Ajiaco hot with capers and heavy cream on the side.
Notes
- You can find dried guascas on Amazon.
- In the USA yo can find frozen papa criolla in Latin markets.
- I like to serve Ajiaco with avocado and a light salad on the side.
Eduardo
Colombian Ajiaco is a chicken soup recipe that's big on flavor. I love making this recipe. It reminds me of my home city of Bogota.
Mireya
I adore ajiaco, this recipe is best. Just like my mom's ajiaco colombiano, but she died and never wrote her recipe. Thank you for this amazing blog.
Stephen
Hi Erica. Just to clarify, that is ⅓ cup DRIED guascas yes?
Alan Bowman
I have found a Colombian restaurant in Madrid (Spain) that has it on the menu.
Patacón Pisao, Calle de las Delicias, 10, 28045 Madrid - near Atocha station
When I have had it in Colombia it has come with patatas saladas (salted potatoes) on the side but never rice.
Anonymous
Thanks for the recipe. I made it today and it was delicious. 🙂
Chanti
I ordered some guascas online, only to discover that this plant grows as a weed here in the USA and that it was growing right in front of my house.
Anyway, I used the fresh guascas to make the ajiaco and I didn’t die. The recipe turned out pretty good , although my chicken turned out dry.
I didn’t have the papás criollas so I used a mix of small potatoes and something that looked similar. They didn’t fall apart like the criollas do so I used my immersion blender to create the thickness ajiaco usually has.
A good recipe but tastes much better eating it in Bogota.
anon
I had it in a farm abut 30 miles south of Facatativa. They used a kind of potato that dissolved when it was cooked. That thickened it. I seem to remember it was all combined in a pot, and all of the manipulations I read here wouldn't have been possible anyway, on an open stove with a gigantic pot.
Patricia leal
Buenos días. Soy bogotana y el ajiaco es un plato típico, delicioso, las invito a preparar esta receta y preferiblemente acompañada de arroz y aguacate, pero es al gusto de cada un@.
Tanya
Hi, just wondering if you have a suggested for a appetizer/entrada to serve with this? Is there a typical Colombian salad you would recommend? Thanks!
Juan R
Most Colombian meals are accompanied by Colombian arepas and or Patacones
Amanda
I had it as a teen in the mid 2000´s in Bogota when I visited my aunt who lived in South america from 20 years of her life with red cross and aid at embassy . Never been able to find papa criolla in Europe. Now I am 30 soon and i am cooking it once every 6 months. It´s my favorite dish of all times.
Juli
Thank you so much for your delicious recipe. A Colombian friend recommended your blog when I asked her for recipes. I have several more planned for this weeks menu.
Adriana Soto-Guaqueta
Thank you for the recipe. Is it possible to just use chicken broth or stock instead of water with bouillon cubes? I find these have MSG in them and avoid it. If so, what would the ratio? And how would you modify the water amount?
Thank you!
Viajar por Colombia
Interesting article! Colombia has a really delicious gastronomy. Their typical dishes are very flavorful and their desserts are amazing. One of the dishes I loved the most was the Ajiaco, it is so tasty that I could not stop eating it. I share with you an article that shows the story of this dish: https://colombiabybus.co/eating/ajiaco-typical-dish-bogota/
Andrew
Does the recipe need dried or fresh guascas? I have dried guacas and wanted to know if that would change the amount in the recipe.
Erica Dinho
I used dried guascas for this recipe. I can't find fresh guascas in the USA.
Elisa
I remember eating this in someone's home in the Old Town of Bogota, up in the hills in a very old Colonial home. They served it with crema, capers, and I believe what they called AJI which was close to a salsa or pico de gallo. I also think that there were also yuca as well as the various types of potatoes and the corn has to be what Americans call Cow Corn which gives the soup its characteristic flavor along w cilantro. It was really the culinary highlite of my trip and we went and ate everywhere...(although the horsemeat kabobs w a salt potato in Manizales were to die for and I ate many even when they told me it was horse...). Been looking at all the wonder recipes from Colombia and waxing nostalgic over them and all the amazing things Colombia has to offer.
Debbie
I lived in Bogotá back in the 80's and had Ajiaco every Monday. I now live in South Florida and we have good Colombian restaurants, so I get my fix!!! What I find missing is the AJÍ CASERO, a spicy vinaigrette which adds another layer of flavor! Maybe you have that recipe on your board! I will look for it as well as Mantecada!!
I love Colombia!!!
Tammi Mclaughlin
The first dish I ever learned to make was Ajiaco. I lived in a room I rented from a couple and she was from Colombia. Yolanda made Ajiaco and showed me how to make it. I have made it ever since and this dish inspired my love of ethnic foods. She cooked the potatoes, corn and chicken together which created a lovely broth. We garnished with lime, avocado, cilantro and sour cream. I'm sure this was her "American" version as this was in the late seventies and I lived in a town that was not very ethnically diverse. We did not have specialty stores back then. Thank you for the memories and I think I will try to make the more authentic version this weekend.