Pepián

Ingredients

Chicken and broth

• 1.5 kgfree-range chicken pieces, on the bone
• 2 litreswater
• 1onion, halved
• 4garlic cloves
• 2 tspsalt

Recado

• 150 gpepitoria (hulled pumpkin seeds)
• 80 gsesame seeds
• 4chiles guaques, stemmed and deseeded
• 2chiles pasa, stemmed and deseeded
• 1chile cobanero, optional, for heat
• 500 gtomatoes
• 250 gmiltomates (tomatillos), husked
• 1onion, quartered
• 6garlic cloves, unpeeled
• 1corn tortilla, toasted dark on the comal
• 1small cinnamon stick
• 4whole cloves
• 6black peppercorns

Vegetables

• 2güisquiles (chayote), peeled and cut into wedges
• 400 gpotatoes, peeled and halved
• 200 ggreen beans, trimmed

To serve

• White rice
• Warm corn tortillas
• Chopped coriander

Directions

1. Simmer the chicken with the water, onion, garlic and salt for 35–40 minutes until just cooked, then lift the pieces out and reserve the broth.
2. Toast the pumpkin seeds on a dry comal over medium heat, shaking constantly, for 3–4 minutes until they puff and pop and turn pale gold. Do the sesame separately for 2 minutes until it smells nutty. Both burn in seconds.
3. Toast the chiles briefly on the same comal until fragrant and just blistered, then soak them in hot water for 20 minutes.
4. Char the tomatoes, miltomates, onion and unpeeled garlic on the comal until blackened in patches and soft, about 10 minutes.
5. Toast the cinnamon, cloves and peppercorns for 30 seconds, then grind them with the seeds to a coarse meal in a spice grinder or on a stone.
6. Blend the drained chiles, charred vegetables, peeled garlic, the toasted tortilla and the ground seeds with 500 ml of the broth to a smooth, thick paste. The tortilla is the traditional thickener.
7. Strain the recado through a sieve into a heavy pot, pressing the solids hard, and fry it over medium heat for 12–15 minutes, stirring constantly, until it darkens to a deep russet brown and the oil breaks out at the edges.
8. Loosen with the remaining broth to the consistency of thick cream, return the chicken, and add the güisquil, potato and beans.
9. Simmer gently, uncovered, for 25–30 minutes until the vegetables are tender and the sauce coats the back of a spoon heavily. Stir often; the seed paste catches easily.
10. Taste for salt, scatter with coriander and serve with white rice and warm tortillas, spooning plenty of the sauce over both.

Technique

• Pepián is one of Guatemala’s national dishes and one of the oldest, a genuinely Maya recado of toasted seeds and chiles into which the Spanish brought cinnamon, cloves and black pepper.
• The whole dish lives or dies on the toasting. Seeds and chiles must be taken to the edge of colour and no further; a single scorched batch makes the sauce bitter and cannot be corrected.
• Frying the blended recado before adding the broth is not optional. It cooks out the raw seed taste and is what turns the paste from orange to brown.
• The sauce thickens noticeably as it stands, so keep some hot broth aside to loosen it when reheating.

Substitutions

• No pepitoria: use unsalted hulled pumpkin seeds from any health food shop, which are the same thing.
• No guaque and pasa chiles: guajillo and ancho are the closest Mexican equivalents and are widely sold.
• No corn tortilla for thickening: a tablespoon of masa harina whisked into the broth does the same job.

Variations

• Pepián de pollo, the everyday version.
• Pepián de res, made with beef shin and cooked longer.
• Pepián negro from Chimaltenango, darker still from more deeply toasted seeds and chiles.

History

A Maya and Spanish fusion stew thickened with toasted seeds and chiles; Guatemala declared it intangible cultural heritage of the nation in 2007.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pepián?

Pepián is a soup & stew from Guatemala: chicken in thick roasted seed-and-chile recado; national dish. A Maya and Spanish fusion stew thickened with toasted seeds and chiles; Guatemala declared it intangible cultural heritage of the nation in 2007.

How long does Pepián take to make?

Pepián takes 45 min of preparation and 1 hr 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Pepián?

Yes, within limits. No pepitoria: use unsalted hulled pumpkin seeds from any health food shop, which are the same thing. No guaque and pasa chiles: guajillo and ancho are the closest Mexican equivalents and are widely sold. No corn tortilla for thickening: a tablespoon of masa harina whisked into the broth does the same job.

What is the most important thing to get right in Pepián?

The whole dish lives or dies on the toasting. Seeds and chiles must be taken to the edge of colour and no further; a single scorched batch makes the sauce bitter and cannot be corrected.