Espagueti con pollo or Puerto Rican Spaghetti with chicken is bursting with flavor from bone-in chicken simmered in a rich tomato and sofrito sauce. Serve with sweet plantains for the most delicious plate of Caribbean comfort food.
If you want more weeknight recipes, check these out: bistec encebollado, arroz con salchichas, pollo al horno, pollo guisado, and picadillo.
Puerto Rican spaghetti ingredients:
- Spaghetti
- Chicken wings, drums, and/or thighs, bone-in, skin on
- Garlic
- Red onion
- Green bell pepper
- Red bell pepper
- Cilantro
- Adobo
- Sazón
- Ground oregano
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Vinegar
- Soy sauce
- Granulated sugar for browning chicken
- Sofrito
- Chicken bouillon paste
- Tomato sauce
- Spanish pimiento stuffed olives
- Parmesan cheese
- Cilantro
I make my own homemade blend of adobo and sazón. They are much healthier than most store-bought seasonings, they are cost effective, and last up to three years when stored in an air tight container.
*Find the full recipe with measurements at the bottom of this post or click the Jump to Recipe button at the top of this page.
How to make espagueti con pollo:
Clean chicken with cold water and white vinegar or lemon juice. Place the chicken in a large bowl. Season the chicken with all of the spices. Add the oil, vinegar, soy sauce, crushed garlic, onions, peppers and cilantro to the bowl and toss everything together until the chicken is evenly coated.
Then, place a large pot or frying pan over medium high heat. Add sugar and allow it to brown. Add chicken and brown on all sides. Allow the chicken to turn brown but be careful not to burn. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
To a large pot, add sofrito, tomato sauce and chicken bouillon. Cook until it becomes fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken and stir to coat in the sofrito sauce. Then, add sliced olives and water. Cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer the chicken on low heat for 40 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is fully cooked through.
In the meantime, place a large pot of water over high heat. Cook the spaghetti according to the package instructions. Toss the spaghetti with the chicken until evenly coated.
Lastly, add parmesan cheese and fold it into the pasta and sprinkle with chopped cilantro. Serve with sweet plantains. Enjoy! ¡Buen provecho!
Tips for cooking spaghetti with chicken:
- Use bone-in, skin-on chicken for maximum flavor!
- Try using different types of pasta for this recipe. Macaroni, ziti, penne and bow ties work well!
- Add some heavy cream or evaporated milk to the sauce to give it a creamy consistency. It’s delicious!
- Add shredded mozzarella, gouda or Swiss cheese to elevate this dish even more.
- Serve with maduros or tostones!
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Espagueti con Pollo (Puerto Rican Spaghetti with Chicken)
Equipment
- 2 large pots one for cooking chicken and one for cooking spaghetti
- 1 large frying pan optional
Ingredients
- 16 oz spaghetti
- 5 lbs chicken wings, drums, and/or thighs bone-in, skin on
- 4 cloves garlic crushed
- 1 red onion
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1/2 cup cilantro
- 1 tbsp adobo
- 1/2 tbsp sazón
- 1 tsp ground oregano
- 1/2 garlic powder
- 1/2 onion powder
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- salt to taste
- 1 tsp granulated sugar for browning chicken
- 3 tbsp sofrito
- 1 tbsp chicken bouillon paste Better than Bouillon
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp Spanish pimiento stuffed olives sliced
- 1/2 cup water
- parmesan cheese grated
- 4 sprigs fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Clean chicken with cold water and white vinegar or lemon juice.
- Place the chicken in a large bowl. Season the chicken with all of the spices. Add the oil, vinegar, soy sauce, crushed garlic, onions, peppers and cilantro to the bowl and toss everything together until the chicken is evenly coated.
- Place a large pot or frying pan over medium high heat. Add sugar and allow it to brown.
- Add chicken and brown on all sides. Allow the chicken to turn brown but be careful not to burn. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
- To a large pot, add sofrito, tomato sauce and chicken bouillon. Cook until it becomes fragrant, about 5 minutes.
- Add the chicken and stir to coat in the sofrito sauce. Add sliced olives and water. Cover and reduce the heat to low.
- Simmer the chicken on low heat for 40 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the chicken is fully cooked through.
- In the meantime, place a large pot of water over high heat. Cook the spaghetti according to the package instructions minus a couple of minutes because the pasta will continue cooking with the chicken later and we don't want it to overcook.
- Toss the spaghetti with the chicken until evenly coated. Add parmesan cheese and fold it into the pasta. Allow the spaghetti to absorb the flavor from the chicken and the sauce for a few minutes.
- Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve with sweet plantains. Enjoy! ¡Buen provecho!
Video
Notes
Tips:
- Try using different types of pasta for this recipe. Macaroni, ziti, penne and bow ties work well!
- Add some heavy cream or evaporated milk to the sauce to give it a creamy consistency. It’s delicious!
- Add shredded mozzarella, gouda or Swiss cheese to elevate this dish even more.
- Serve with maduros or tostones!
- Save leftovers for the next day or freeze single servings for up to 3 months.
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Check out more Caribbean recipes!
Arroz con Gandules (Rice and Pigeon Peas)
Guineos en Escabeche (Marinated Green Bananas)
Aceite de Achiote (Annatto Oil)
Ensalada de Coditos (Macaroni Salad)
Ensalada de Papa (Potato Salad)
Pastel al Horno (Easy Pasteles)
Pavochón (Puerto Rican Style Turkey)
Pastelón de Maduro (Plantain Lasagna)
English 
Spanish 
