Caldereta or Kaldereta is one of the most popular dishes in the Philippines. In fact, when you go to any Filipino restaurant or even in the carinderias, I’m sure you’ll find the Caldereta.
Caldereta is basically a tomato based stew that originally started with goat meat as the main ingredient. Later on, variations in meats where made like Beef Caldereta, Pork Caldereta, and for this recipe, we have Chicken Caldereta.
The minor ingredients also vary but the most staple ones are the tomato sauce (duh), bell peppers, and sausages (a cheaper alternative can make use of hotdogs).
Yes, why not use chicken in creating this yummy dish? Chicken is readily available, its raw price is reasonable, and a big bonus is that it contains less fat (good news for people trying to reduce weight).
Chicken meat in Caldereta is definitely possible and in case you’re wondering, this recipe will help you come up with the perfect mix for this dish:
Ingredients:
- 1 chicken (1 kilo)
- 1 can liver spread or
- 1 cup lechon sauce
- 1 small can tomato sauce
- 3-4 pcs. sweet whole pickles (sliced slanting by, 1/4′ thick)
- 1/4 cup pickle sauce
- 2 bell pepper (red & green, strips)
- 3 onions (quartered)
- 4 Frankfurters or sausage (sliced slantingly, 1/4″ thick
- 1/2 head garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. ground pepper
Cooking Instructions:
- Clean chicken, cut into small serving pieces. marinate in vinegar, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and garlic. Let stand for 1-2 hours. Drain. Fry until a little brown.
- Put back fried chicken into vinegar mixture, add tomato sauce, pickles, pickle liquid, onions. Cover.
- When it starts boiling, lower heat and simmer until chicken is tender. Add the rest of the ingredients, Thicken sauce with liver spread or prepared lechon sauce. Cook for another 10 minutes.
- NOTE:
- If you want a more spicy caldereta, add minced siling labuyo and more powdered pepper.
Image: russianfilipinokitchen.com
