Pan con pollo o pan relleno Salvadoreño (Salvadoran Chicken sandwich)

This is the "Crème de la crème" for me, it's right up there with a pupusa.

Pan con pollo, or pan relleno, is one of my favorite dishes from El Salvador. It can be made with chompipe (turkey) or chicken and is typically prepared for holidays or special occasions. This was the dish I always asked my mom to make for my birthdays growing up!

What is Pan con pollo?

Pan con pollo is made with pan francés, a French bread roll, stuffed with a cabbage salad known as escabeche, fresh vegetables, and chicken stewed in a tomato-based sauce. The combination of all these flavors in one bite is absolutely perfect. It can be messy to eat, but if it doesn’t drip, it wasn’t made right—at least that’s what I believe, anyway!

How to make Pan con pollo?

Let me start off by saying that no two panes will taste the same, everyone adds something different. The recipe below is a combination of my mom’s escabeche and my tía Leo’s chicken recipe. There are quite a few steps, so I’ve broken them down into three parts:

1. The chicken and sauce

2. The escabeche and salad

3. The assembly

The Chicken

This chicken recipe and the sauce are so good that you could make them on their own for dinner and serve them with white rice and a salad. If you don’t have the time, you can also buy a rotisserie chicken, shred it, and cook it in the sauce. Will it taste exactly the same as this? No. But I understand that long processes like these can sometimes discourage people from trying the recipe, so it’s okay to find a few shortcuts. I’ve done it before, and because the sauce carries so much of the flavor, the chicken will still absorb some of it as it stews.

Chicken

• 3 Chicken quarters OR preffered chicken cut. This was roughly 1.5 lbs.

• 2 tbsp Mustard

• 1 tsp Cumin

• 1 tsp Chicken bouillon

• 1/2 tbsp Salsa inglessa (Worcestershire sauce)

• 3 grated Garlic cloves or 1 tsp garlic powder

• Pepper

• Salt to taste

• Vegetable or preffered oil to fry the chicken

The Sauce

• 4 roma tomatoes

• 1/4 green bell pepper

• 2 garlic gloves

• 1/4 white onion

• 1-2 tbsp of relajo (1/2 tbsp Sesame seeds, 1/4 of tsp oregano, 2-3 bay leaves, 2-3 garlic, 4-6 pumpkin seeds, 2-3 cloves, 1 tsp cumin, 2-3 peanuts and black pepper to taste)

• 1 tsp Chicken bouillon

• 1/2 envelope of Sazón - culantro and achiote (Culantro and anatto powder)

• 1 cup water or chicken broth

1. Wash and clean your chicken, then pat it dry.

2. In a small container, combine the mustard, cumin, chicken bouillon, salsa inglesa, garlic, pepper, and salt to form a paste.

3. Rub the paste onto the chicken, cover it, and let it rest for at least an hour. This time, I let it marinate overnight—if you have the time, I highly recommend doing the same!

4. Place a deep frying pan over medium heat and add the oil. Once it’s hot, add the chicken and let it cook for about 10–15 minutes. Flip it once it’s browned on one side. Make sure to use a pan that comfortably fits the chicken pieces, or cook them in batches.

5. While the chicken cooks, let’s make the sauce! In a small skillet or comal, toast the relajo over low to medium heat until the seeds start to turn yellow. Set it aside. Please note that some relajo mixes may contain peanuts, so do not use it if anyone in your family has an allergy. Instead, add the seasonings separately or buy a peanut-free mix. I’ve listed approximate measurements for each spice if you'd like to make your own. If you’re using powdered spices, there’s no need to toast them.

6. Wash the vegetables. You can either boil or roast the tomatoes, green bell pepper, garlic cloves, and white onion before blending—this is optional and based on your preference. This time, I simply chopped the vegetables fresh and added them straight to the blender.

7. Once the vegetables are ready, blend them with the toasted relajo seasoning, 1 teaspoon of chicken bouillon, 1/2 packet of powdered Sazón Culantro y Achiote, and 1 cup of water. Feel free to use your preferred brand of sazón. Blend until smooth, and add more water if you'd like a thinner consistency.

8. If your blender doesn’t fully process the relajo spices, or if you prefer a smoother sauce, strain it. Otherwise, taste and adjust the seasoning as needed, then set the sauce aside.

9. Once the chicken is golden brown on both sides, remove any excess fat from the pan and pour in the sauce, making sure to fully submerge the chicken. Cover and let it stew over medium heat for about 30 minutes, or until it comes to a boil. During this time, you can start on the second step!

10. You can leave the chicken on the bone or shred it and return it to the sauce after it boils. For serving purposes, I find it easier to shred it, though some people prefer serving whole pieces.

The escabeche and salad

My mom has always called this salad escabeche, but I’ve come to learn that in El Salvador, the term typically refers to pickled vegetables. However, she’s not the only one—I’ve seen others online also refer to it as escabeche. In El Salvador, escabeche may include green beans, cauliflower, carrots, jalapeños, and more. In our household, my mom combined the traditional cabbage and carrot salad and upgraded it with green beans and other vegetables. I know she’s my mom and I’m biased, but no other pan con pollo hits the spot because they're mixing this portion.

Escabeche ingredients:

• Handful of whole green beans

• 1 medium carrot

• 1/2 cabbage

• 1/2 green bell pepper

• 1 stick celery

• 2 tsp butter

• Salt & pepper to taste

• 1 tsp chicken bouillon

• Mayonnaise

• Mustard

1. Wash your vegetables and peel your carrot.

2. Place a pot with water, once it boils add in the green beans for about 5 mins or until tender.

3. In the meantime shred 1/2 of the cabbage and cut the carrot, pepper and celary into Julienne strips and place in a container.

4. Once the green beans are tender, split them in half longways and add them into the rest of the mix.

5. Place a saucepan on low to medium heat and add in your butter. Once it's melted add in the mixture of vegetables and sauté until they are translucent and tender.

6. Place the vegetables is a mixing bowl to cool down. Once they are cooled add in mayonnaise and mustard to taste. I typically only add 1/2 tbsp of mustard. Mix well and set to the side or place in the fridge if you won't be serving soon.

Salad

• 1 Lettuce - Escarole or preferred

• 1 tomato

• 1 cucumber

• 2-3 radishes

• Beats

• Berro (can be found as watercrest at a grocery store)

1. Was your veggies

2. Slice the tomato, cucumber and radishes into thin wheels. The beats need to be sliced as well but they are typically bought canned and slices already. If you want to cook it yourself, you will have to boil it and slice it.

3. Letture - separate the lettuce leafs

The Assembly:

You can do this in whatever order works best for you, but I’ll share the most common method—and if you find a better way, awesome! For large gatherings, we set up all the ingredients buffet-style and let guests assemble their pan con pollohowever they like. I wouldn’t recommend making them ahead of time, as the bread can get soggy and you want the chicken to be warm. One option is to prepare the chicken (either fried or baked) separately from the sauce. This way, you can assemble the bread with everything except the chicken and sauce, which can then be served on the side.

Ingredients:

• Pan frances rolls or bollilo rolls. If these are hard to find, pick your favorite bread roll that is soft to bite into and won't get soggy too quick.

• Stewed chicken and sauce from step 1

• Escabache and ensalada from step 2

• Mayo and mustard spread to taste (mix mayo and mustard to taste)

1. Grab a roll and cut it open down the middle. You can do it through the top or on the side of the roll. I prefer on the side because it's easier to bite into.

2. Add a layer of the mayo-mustard spread to the bread

3. Place a lettuce leaf first, this will keep the bread from getting too soggy.

4. Add the vegetables from the salad that YOU want and place them on either side of the bread.I don't like lettuce or beats so i skip those two.

5. Add a bit of the escabeche right in the middle and on top of your lettuce

6. Add your chicken and then drizzel it with as much sauce as you desire.

Learn the process and make it your own! I really hope you guys enjoy this recipe and make it for the up coming holidays. As always for the video head over to Instagram or TikTok @flourishwithg and give is a follow. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!