Short answer: Pan con pollo (or panes con pollo) is El Salvador’s great celebration sandwich: chicken slow-stewed in a deep, spiced tomato sauce called recaudo, then piled onto a crusty roll with mayonnaise, lettuce, sliced tomato, cucumber, radish, and watercress, with the warm sauce spooned over the top. It is not a quick grilled torta. The whole thing turns on the sauce, built from a toasted spice blend called relajo, which is what makes a Salvadoran pan con pollo taste like nothing else.
This is holiday and party food, the sandwich that shows up for birthdays, Christmas, and Sunday gatherings. It takes time because the chicken has to stew until it falls apart in its sauce, but most of that is hands-off, and the payoff is one of the best sandwiches in Central America.
What is pan con pollo?
Pan con pollo, also called panes con pollo, is a Salvadoran sandwich of chicken stewed in recaudo, a tomato sauce built on the toasted spice mix called relajo. The stewed chicken and its sauce go onto a crusty bread roll (pan francés) spread with mayonnaise, then dressed with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, radish, and watercress. It is a festive, sit-down sandwich eaten at celebrations and on weekends, quite different from a grilled torta.
Ingredients
For the chicken and recaudo:
- 3 lb chicken pieces
- 4 tomatoes, 1 green bell pepper, 1 onion, 3 cloves garlic
- Relajo: 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, 2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, 2 dried guajillo or pasilla chiles, 1 teaspoon allspice, 4 cloves, 2 bay leaves, 1 teaspoon oregano, 1 teaspoon achiote
- Salt
To build the sandwiches:
- 6 crusty bread rolls (pan francés or bolillo)
- Mayonnaise and mustard
- Lettuce, sliced tomato, cucumber, radish, and watercress
- Pickled onion and sliced egg, optional
How to make it
- Simmer the chicken. Cook the chicken in salted water with a piece of onion until tender, about 30 minutes. Lift it out and reserve the broth.
- Toast the relajo. In a dry pan, toast the sesame and pumpkin seeds, chiles, and whole spices until fragrant.
- Make the recaudo. Blend the toasted relajo with the tomatoes, pepper, onion, garlic, and a cup of broth until smooth. Strain if you like it silky.
- Stew it down. Cook the sauce in a little oil until it darkens, then return the chicken and simmer until it is coated and very tender. Season with salt.
- Build the sandwiches. Split the rolls, spread mayonnaise and mustard, and layer lettuce, the saucy chicken, and the sliced vegetables.
- Spoon and serve. Spoon extra warm sauce over the filling, close the roll, and serve right away.
Tips
- The relajo is the soul. Toasting the seeds and spices is what gives the sauce its depth. Many cooks buy a ready-made relajo blend; either way, toast it before blending.
- Use the right bread. A crusty roll that can soak up sauce without falling apart is the point. A soft burger bun will go to mush.
- Make the chicken ahead. The stewed chicken is better the next day, so it is a good party dish to prep in advance and assemble to order.
Serve it with horchata de morro. More of the country’s table is in the El Salvador food guide, and the wider region is in the Maya World guide.
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Pepitas
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Frequently asked questions
What is pan con pollo?
A Salvadoran sandwich of chicken stewed in a spiced tomato recaudo, piled onto a crusty roll with mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, cucumber, radish, and watercress. It is a celebration food.
What is relajo?
Relajo is the Salvadoran toasted spice blend behind the sauce: sesame and pumpkin seeds, dried chiles, allspice, cloves, bay, oregano, and achiote. It is toasted and blended into the recaudo.
Is pan con pollo the same as a torta?
No. A torta usually has grilled or fried fillings. Pan con pollo uses chicken slowly stewed in sauce, and that saucy, spoon-it-over style is what sets it apart.
What bread is used?
Pan francés, a crusty Salvadoran roll similar to a bolillo. It needs to be sturdy enough to hold the sauce without collapsing.
When is pan con pollo eaten?
It is celebration food, made for birthdays, Christmas, and weekend gatherings, though you will also find it at sandwich shops any day of the week.
About Isela Post
Isela is a Belizean mother who has been cooking from memory and from markets her whole life. Her recipes carry the food of the Yucatec Maya tradition, the corner store ingredients of daily Belizean life, and the party table of every celebration she has ever fed people at. She writes for the Belize News Post.
