Guajillo Braised Chicken

Chicken thighs braised in a blended guajillo chile sauce until falling apart.

Marisol VegaUpdated 8/28/2026
🍗
80m
Total
25m
Prep
55m
Cook
6
Serves
Medium
Difficulty

Why this recipe works

A braise that gets all of its character from the chile paste, so the toasting and blending stage is worth doing slowly.

Ingredients

Equipment: Blender, Dutch oven

Method

  1. 1Toast the chiles briefly, then soak in hot water 20 minutes.
  2. 2Blend with tomato, onion, garlic, oregano and cumin.
  3. 3Brown the seasoned chicken thighs skin-side down and set aside.
  4. 4Fry the blended sauce in the same pan for 6 minutes until it darkens.
  5. 5Return the chicken, add stock, cover and braise 40 minutes.

Chef notes

Chef tips

Frying the blended sauce before adding liquid is what removes the raw chile edge.

Substitutions

Ancho chiles give a sweeter, milder sauce.

Storage

Fridge 3 days.

Reheating

Reheat covered on low with a splash of stock.

Nutrition per serving

490
Calories
40g
Protein
14g
Carbs
29g
Fat
3g
Fiber
650mg
Sodium

Values are chef estimates for one serving and will vary with brands and portioning.

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