Uses for Aji Amarilla paste

[Smithy]

Host's note: this topic began in, and was split from, the "Gotten Any Fun Stuff?" topic.

 

On 3/21/2025 at 12:27 PM, Smithy said:

 

You're very welcome! And I'm glad it has arrived!

 

My little jar of Aji de Amarillo (Peruvian chile paste), that I ordered on March 6 and was shipped on March 7, is still zinging around the country! I've lost track of the delay notices, but there have been at least four.

 

 

It finally arrived! This little jar, ordered on March 6, arrived at my post office box on Tuesday, March 25. Why it languished so long in carrier facilities is a mystery. That said, it was beautifully packed: triple padded bubble wrapping. I'd been worried that it would have been damaged in transit, but I think it would have survived any abuse short of being driven over by the delivery truck.

 

 

Now I'm set to make the Peruvian chicken stew I've been planning for a while.

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 06:17 PM by Smithy
Added host's note (log)

[Margaret Pilgrim]

Now that you have this aji product, you can also make one of my favorite dishes.    A tiny Peruvian restaurant used to feature "chugo de pato", a soupy stew with a confit duck leg in the middle.   I ordered it every visit, which was often, but this little treasure closed and I started searching for the recipe.   Nothing.

 

Then I came across a recipe for seco de pato, and "light bulb"!     Transliterating, I realized that this was my chugo.    Not 100, but 95% works for me.    I hope you'll give it a go.   That jar of Aji goes a long way!

[TdeV]

Don't have access to Bon Appétit, so I googled recipe name which brought me a website which google then asked me if I wanted a translation. Natch, I said yes. Gosh! Two ingredients it found were "1 tbsp red chilli or spoonful pancake" and "1 slice of shoe lopped clay in thin strips". Further research will surely be required! 🤣

[Margaret Pilgrim]

TdV, will this backdoor link work for you?

[TdeV]

10 hours ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

TdV, will this backdoor link work for you?

 

Thanks, Margaret. That list of ingredients is much more comprehensible to me! Unfortunately the button for Directions leads back to the Bon Appétit site which is paywalled. Suggestions about how to proceed would be appreciated.

 

I read that duck leg confit was used in the recipe from your Peruvian restaurant. Do any of the recipes you've discovered use confit also?

 

And now, something where you might be able to shed some light. Although I lived in SF Bay Area for dozens of years, I still have a very low tolerance to spice heat. All the same, I like the thought of the flavour of chiles. Do you have suggestions about how I could approach this dish? The recipe in your quoted link wants 1/2 cup (5 tablespoons) aji amarillo paste. Perhaps I could try 1 tablespoon. What foodstuff should I substitute for the other 4 tablespoons?

 

Many thanks.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

Confession: I use recipes as suggestion rather than scripture.    Theresa, when I approached this recipe, I, too,was taken aback by the quantity of aji paste.   I tasted the paste and reduced the amount to a tablespoon, adding to taste as I went.   This is not a spicy dish but rather a complex broth with noticeable cumin and cilantro notes.    Important are the vegetables.   The sweet potato adds definite location flavor.   I have at times added butternut squash and hominy.    I also use pseudo confit: slow roasted duck legs.  re directions, I would simply follow your usual vegetable soup protocol.