Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Pepián de Pollo
Chicken in a deep, toasty sauce of charred tomatoes, chiles, and ground seeds, Guatemala’s Mayan-rooted national stew.
Guatemalan · medium · serves 4
prep 25 min · cook 50 min
~759 cal · 72g protein · 31g carbs · 38g fat · 7g fiber · 7g sugars · 8g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Pepian is one of Guatemala's oldest and most revered dishes, a thick, dark stew whose roots reach back to pre-Columbian Maya ceremonial cooking, later married to ingredients the Spanish brought. It is considered a national dish, and its preparation carries real cultural weight.
Its body and its character come from seeds ground the ancient way: pepitoria (toasted pumpkin or squash seeds) and sesame, along with dried chiles and spices, all toasted and ground, traditionally on a stone, into a rich, nutty base that thickens the stew without any flour. Chicken, or beef or pork, in it along with vegetables.
In colonial Antigua and across the highlands it is brought out for saints' days, celebrations, and unhurried Sunday lunches alike, always served with rice and a stack of warm tortillas to scoop it up. Earthy, deep, and ceremonial, pepian is a living taste of Guatemala's Maya heritage.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally gluten-, dairy-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
2 lbs chicken thighs, bone-in
3 tomatoes
4
Hard to find? tinned tomatillos, or green tomatoes with a squeeze of lime - tinned tomatillos are widely stocked and much closer than green tomatoes, which are not tart in the same way
2 dried guaque or guajillo chiles
2 dried pasa or ancho chiles
1/2 cup pepitas (squash seeds)
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 corn tortilla (to thicken)
1 onion
4 cloves garlic
1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
for 4 rice, to serve
for 4 tortillas, to serve
Instructions
1
Simmer the chicken (or vegetables) in salted water to cover for 25 minutes, keeping the broth.
2
Dry-char the tomatoes, tomatillos, onion, and garlic on a hot comal or skillet until blistered black in spots.
3
In the same pan, toast the chiles, pepitas, sesame, cinnamon, cloves, and the tortilla until fragrant and deeply coloured.
✎ Chef’s note
This charring and toasting is where pepian gets its smoky depth and colour. Take everything to deep brown, just short of burnt.
4
Blend everything charred and toasted with 2 cups of the broth until completely smooth.
5
Simmer this sauce for 15 minutes, until it darkens and thickens.
6
Return the chicken to the sauce and simmer 10 minutes. Serve with rice and warm tortillas.
Antigua, Sacatepéquez tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Sacatepéquez (Antigua). Sacatepequez is colonial Antigua under its volcanoes, where pepian, a stew thickened with toasted seeds and dried chiles, is cooked for saints' days and family gatherings. Corn tortillas, black beans, and tamales wrapped in banana leaf are the everyday foundation.
🗺️
Guatemala. The recados are the point. Pepian is thickened with pumpkin and sesame seeds toasted dark before grinding and is usually named as the national dish; jocon is the green one, built on tomatillo and coriander; and kak'ik, the Q'eqchi' turkey soup, is on Guatemala's own list of national intangible heritage. All three start with dry-roasting rather than frying.
🌍
North America. North America's table began with Indigenous foodways, the "three sisters" of corn, beans, and squash, plus chiles, tomatoes, and cacao, then layered on colonial, African, and immigrant influences. From Mexico's UNESCO-recognized cuisine to the Cajun and Creole pots of Louisiana and the fiery jerk of the Caribbean, the region turns ancient staples into something new. Barbecue, tacos, gumbo, and mole all carry stories of migration and adaptation.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Guatemala
Desayuno ChapínThe full Guatemalan breakfast plate: eggs, soupy black beans, fried sweet plantain, fresh cream, and warm corn tortillas.
Tostadas GuatemaltecasCrisp fried tortillas topped three ways, with guacamole, tomato salsa, or black beans, a light Guatemalan street lunch.
Rellenitos de PlátanoSweet fried plantain dumplings stuffed with spiced black bean paste, a Guatemalan treat.
Browse all Guatemala recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Skillet or frying pan, Griddle or flat pan, Blender.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Guatemala meal
Atol de EloteDrink
Rellenitos de PlátanoDessert
Tostadas GuatemaltecasLunch
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Dairy-Free Recipes from Around the World
Nut-Free Recipes from Around the World
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Frequently asked questions
What is Pepián de Pollo?
Chicken in a deep, toasty sauce of charred tomatoes, chiles, and ground seeds, Guatemala’s Mayan-rooted national stew.
Where does Pepián de Pollo come from?
Pepián de Pollo is a Guatemalan dish from Sacatepéquez (Antigua), Guatemala.
Can Pepián de Pollo be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Pepián de Pollo recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Pepián de Pollo safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Pepián de Pollo take to make?
About 75 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 50 minutes cooking), serving 4.
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