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Pipián (Chicken in Peanut Sauce)

Pipián (Chicken in Peanut Sauce) is a traditional Filipino recipe for a classic dish of chicken cooked in a peanut-based sauce thickened with rice flour and coloured with annatto seeds. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Filipino version of: Chicken in Peanut Sauce (Pipián).

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

40 minutes

Total Time:

60 minutes

Serves:

4

Rating: 4.5 star rating

Tags : Chilli RecipesSpice RecipesChicken RecipesFowl RecipesPhilippines Recipes

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Peanut sauces of different types are ubiquitous in Southeast Asian cookery. Of course, the peanut, a native of Mexico was brought to the Philippines by the Spanish. This stew is flavoured with annatto, the orange-red seeds of the achiote tree, (Bixa orellana) another species native to Mexico.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp groundnut oil
1 tsp annatto seeds
1kg (2 ½ lbs) chicken breasts (skinned)
2 spring onions (scallions), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Thai birds’ eye chilli, minced
1 tbsp rice wine
2 tsp coconut vinegar
1 tbsp toasted rice flour
375ml (1 ½ cups) chicken stock
2 tbsp smooth peanut butter
1 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp fresh coriander (cilantro), chopped
2 tbsp roast peanuts, coarsely ground

Method:

Heat the groundnut oil in a large, deep, frying pan (or wok) over medium heat. Add the annatto seeds and cook, stirring frequently, until the oil turns a reddish colour (about 5 minutes). Remove the seeds with a slotted spoon and discard. Increase the heat to medium-high. When the oil is just smoking add the chicken and brown for about 4-5 minutes per side. Remove the chicken with tongs and set aside.

Add the spring onions to the pan along with the garlic and chilli. Stir-fry for one minute only (be careful not to allow the vegetables to burn). Add the rice wine and vinegar and use to deglaze the pan.

Dissolve the rice flour in the chicken stock and stir into the pan along with the peanut butter and fish sauce. Return the chicken to a pan, bring to a simmer, and cook gently, uncovered, for about 25 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is fully cooked.

Transfer the chicken to a serving dish and pour over the sauce. Garnish with the coriander leaves and chopped peanuts and serve accompanied by plain white rice.

If you are not a fan of peanuts, you can easily transform this dish to the cashew nut version, Pipián Casoy. Make a cashew nut butter by blending 4 tbsp cashew nut to a smooth paste with 1 tbsp olive oil. Use this to substitute for the peanut butter. Substitute olive oil for the groundnut oil and chopped, toasted, cashew nuts for the roasted peanuts. Cook in exactly the same manner as described above.