Pan con Pollo, also known as Panes con Pollo, is a variation of the well-known Panes con Pavo Salvadoreños that originated in El Salvador. This traditional Salvadoran Sandwich offers a different and delectable way to use chicken. I’ve made countless chicken stew recipes for Pan con Pollo over the years, from the simplest to the most time-consuming, and this one is one of our favorites.
The base of my Pan Con Pollo recipe is a hearty and delicious chicken stew made with rotisserie chicken and flavor combinations that my family and I enjoy. It’s also quick and easy to assemble. It is a one-pot meal that can be on the table in under an hour to make a flavorful smothered chicken Sandwich that will melt in your mouth as you bite into it.
Plus, it includes some clever shortcuts that allow it to be prepared on a weeknight without the need to spend all day in the kitchen. It tastes just as good, if not better, than the traditional Pan con Pollo served in Salvadoran restaurants.😏
Additionally, you can use this recipe to prepare various meals, such as Salvadoran Turkey Sandwich or Mexican-inspired dishes such as shredded chicken wraps, Chimichangas, Burritos, Flautas, Tamales, or simply serve over Buttered Noodles.
Jump to:
- Why We Love This Pan con Pollo
- What is Pan con Pollo?
- Pan con Pollo Ingredients
- Tools you’ll need
- How to Make Pan con Pollo
- How to Assemble Pan con Pollo
- Substitutions
- Variations
- How to Serve
- Additional Suggestions
- How to Store & Re-Heat
- Make-Ahead
- How to Freeze
- Tips for Making The Best Pan Con Pollo
- FAQ
- What is El Relajo Spice Mix?
- How to Make Relajo Spice Mix?
- How do you use El Relajo Spice Mix?
- Notes:
- More Chicken Recipes:
- Watch How to Make Pan con Pollo
- 📖 Recipe
Why We Love This Pan con Pollo
- It starts with rotisserie chicken, an excellent base for quick meals, but you can also make it with fresh chicken. (See👉 FAQ)
- It’s simple to make, and the result is delicious.
- It is made with rotisserie chicken, eliminating the need to precook the chicken.
- You can use this recipe to prepare various meals, such as Panes con Chumpe, or Mexican-inspired dishes such as shredded chicken wraps, Chimichangas, or simply served over noodles.
What is Pan con Pollo?
Pan con Pollo, also known as Panes con Pollo, is a Salvadoran Sandwich traditionally served hot in a submarine bread filled with chicken, turkey, and fresh vegetables. It originated in El Salvador, where the most popular filling is chicken simmered in tomato sauce and El Relajo spices before being hand-pulled into a hearty sandwich. Fresh tomato, cucumbers, raw onion, watercress, shredded cabbage, and, on occasion, hard-boiled eggs are included in the preparation.
Nowadays, almost every country has its version of Panes con Pollo, like Pan con Pollo Peruano, a popular dish in Peru, or Pan de Pollo Guatemalteco, a popular dish in Guatemala. In addition, there are meat variations and even different cooking methods and other names, such as Panes Relleno, Panes con Pavo, Pan con Chumpe, Panes con Chumpe, and Pan con Pollo Salvadoreño among others.
Although modern kitchen appliances have made Pan con Pollo Salvadoreño at home easier than ever before, this wasn’t always the case. They were once tricky and time-consuming to prepare, even though they are now everyday weeknight dinners in many households. Nevertheless, these cooking methods are still practiced and preserved in many cultures today.
Furthermore, aside from being a crowd-pleaser, this Salvadoran Sandwich recipe is also extremely simple to prepare and highly customizable. You can use whatever type of meat or vegetable substitute you prefer. My easy step-by-step pan con Pollo recipe provides the basic approach for making Panes con Pollo salvadoreños that you may follow to get started. Feel free to make the chicken stew ahead of time but assemble the sandwich at the last minute when serving so they don’t get soggy.
Pan con Pollo Ingredients
Note: The full ingredients list is provided in the recipe card below.
- Whole Rotisserie Chicken: You can use leftover boiled chicken, roasted chicken, or turkey, or make it from scratch with a fresh whole chicken. ( See Notes)
- Fresh Vegetables: I use a combination of onion, tomatoes, and poblano pepper.
- Seasonings: I use Sazon Goya Culantro y Achiote to give a distinctly Latin flavor, but you can use your favorite poultry seasoning.
- Dried Chile Peppers & Ground Black Pepper: This recipe for Pan con Pollo yields a spicy sauce, so if you don’t like spicy food or are sensitive to it, reduce the amount of the Chile de Arbol and red pepper flakes or omit them entirely. You can always add more red pepper flakes for a spicier flavor, but you can’t take them back once they’ve been added.
- Sugar: I like to add a pinch of sugar to the tomato sauce to reduce the acidity and make it more balanced, but this is optional.
- Knorr Chicken Flavor Bouillon enhances the flavor, but you can substitute it with Kosher salt if you prefer.
- Bread: The classic way to serve a Salvadoran Sandwich is on hefty bread such as Bolillo, Telera, or Hoagie Bread.
- Toppings: Cabbage, Watercress, cucumbers, radishes, fresh tomato, and onion.
- Condiments: Mayonnaise and yellow mustard are essential condiments in this recipe; they help give a distinctive flavor. I recommend using a generous amount of both to enhance the pan de Pollo flavor even further. However, if you don’t like either of them, you can leave them out.
Tools you’ll need
How to Make Pan con Pollo
Note: The full instructions are provided in the recipe card below.
Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan. When hot, add the chile arbol, chile guajillo, Chile Pasilla, and chile ancho and saute, stirring for 1 to 2 minutes or until the oil begins to turn a bit orange from the chiles.
Add the garlic, fresh tomatoes, poblanos pepper, and onion, and cook over medium-low heat until the fresh vegetables soften, occasionally stirring about 10 minutes. Add the crushed canned tomato, rinse the can with 2 cups of hot water, and add the water to the pan; season with chicken bouillon and sazon goya culantro y achiote, sugar, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce heat to low, stirring and constantly scraping the bottom of the pan.
Using an immersion or standard blender, process the mixture in batches until smooth enough for your taste. (If using a standard blender, take care not to fill the jar more than half full per batch, leave the hole in the lid open, and cover with a clean dishtowel to allow the heat to escape), and pour it back into the saucepan.
Add the disassembled bone-in rotisserie chicken and bay leaves to the saucepan to help the sauce develop more flavor, and bring the sauce to a simmer and cook, occasionally stirring, until it has deepened in color and reduced slightly, about 30 minutes (if the sauce begins to scorch, lower the heat). The sauce is done when the sauce is thickened and no longer watery.
Discard the skin and bones from the chicken. Using two forks, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Return the chicken meat to the stew. Bring the stew just to a simmer. Taste and adjust the season with salt and pepper, if needed. Remove the bay leaves.
How to Assemble Pan con Pollo
On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, assemble all vegetables. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 400° F
Toast your Bolillo Rolls on the middle rack of the oven, either on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or directly on the grates, for about 10 minutes, flipping it halfway through.
Place toasted Bolillo Rolls on each plate, cut lengthwise, and spread mayonnaise on one side of the bread. On the other side, spread mustard and top each piece of bread with shredded cabbage or two pieces of lettuce, cucumber slices, a couple of onions, fresh tomatoes, and radish slices.
Mound the shredded chicken into each bread, scoop a small spoonful of sauce onto each Pan con Pollo, and top with watercress or cilantro. Repeat the process with the remaining Bolillo Rolls. Buen provecho! 😋🍻
Substitutions
- Chicken: Instead of using rotisserie chicken, you can prepare it with fresh chicken. Simply cut it into 8 pieces (backbone discarded), sear it, and then add the rest of the ingredients and cook, occasionally stirring, until the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 1 hour.
- Bread: Instead of Bolillo rolls, you can use Telera rolls, Hoagies, or any other sub rolls that can hold all the ingredients.
- Watercress: Chopped cilantro can be used instead of watercress.
- Cabbage: Romain lettuce can be used instead of cabbage.
Variations
How to Serve
Panes con Pollo is an excellent stand-alone dish because it is filling and satisfying on its own.
Additional Suggestions
Serve it with a Chilled Coca-Cola or Beer.
How to Store & Re-Heat
Store leftover Pan con Pollo sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days. The chicken stew sauce can be reheated gently on the stovetop over medium heat or in the microwave until thoroughly heated.
Make-Ahead
Chicken Stew “Salsa de Pan con Pollo” can be made up to 3 days ahead. First, let cool, cover, and chill. Then when you’re ready to eat, gently reheat on a stovetop over medium heat or in the microwave. Assemble the Pan con Pollo before serving so they don’t get soggy.
How to Freeze
It is not advisable to freeze.
Tips for Making The Best Pan Con Pollo
- If you’d like the sauce thicker, cook a little more until it is the consistency you’d like.
- Assemble the Pan con Pollo before serving so they don’t get soggy.
- Reheat the chicken stew gently on the stovetop or in the microwave.
- The sauce is done when the sauce is thickened and no longer watery.
- Alternatively, if desired, you can pull the meat from the chicken, discarding the skin and bones before adding it to the sauce.
- Taste the Chicken stew sauce at the end before adding extra Knorr Chicken Flavor Bouillon or salt and adjust as needed.
- Cook the Chicken stew sauce on low heat, frequently stirring, to reduce splattering.
FAQ
Can I use fresh chicken?
You can prepare it with fresh chicken instead of using rotisserie chicken if you prefer. Simply cut it into 8 pieces (backbone discarded), sear it, and then add the rest of the ingredients and cook, occasionally stirring, until the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through and tender, about 1 hour.
Is using a different type of meat going to ruin the dish?
No, it will not ruin it; you can use any meat of your choice or leftovers, such as Thanksgiving turkey, which I highly recommend so that you have an excuse to make our delicious Pan con Chumpe recipe.
What type of bread is used for Pan con Pollo?
Any hearty sandwich bread such as bolillo or hoagy bread will do.
How do you shred Chicken?
Once cooled, remove the bones and discard them. Then, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces using two forks or your hands.
What is El Relajo Spice Mix?
Relajo is a spice mix that serves as the foundation for many Salvadoran dishes, such as Pan con Pollo. It consists of sesame seeds, annatto paste, bay leaves, black pepper, dried California chile, dried ancho chile, pumpkin seeds, and raw peanuts; the spice mix may vary according to the dish or cook.
How to Make Relajo Spice Mix?
I don’t use Relajo Spice Mix in my Pan de Pollo, but if you’re interested, I’ve included a homemade recipe below. It yields approximately 3/4 cups.
The ingredients are as follows:1 California or pasilla dried chili, tear into large pieces, 1 ancho dried chili, tear into large pieces, (1) 3″ cinnamon stick, 4 dried bay leaves, 2 tablespoons coriander seeds, 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 2 tablespoons raw unsalted peanuts, 2 tablespoons raw unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, 1 tablespoon cumin seeds, 1 teaspoon whole cloves, 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 1 tablespoon Achiote (annatto) seeds or 2 teaspoons powder
Instructions: Remove the stems from the dried chiles and tear them into large pieces. Toast the chiles in a large skillet over medium-high heat, turning once or twice until they change color and begin to release a toasty aroma, about 2 minutes. Set aside to cool.
In the same skillet, toast sesame seeds, peanuts, and pumpkin seeds for about 1 minute. Add the black pepper, coriander seeds, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, whole clove, and thyme. Toast, stirring for another minute or until aromatic. Set aside to let it cool.
Once cooled, transfer everything to a blender along with the achiote seeds and blend on high until finely ground for about 1 minute ( be careful not to overprocess; you don’t want to turn it into a paste). Relajo Spice Mix can be made 1 month ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
How do you use El Relajo Spice Mix?
When sweating the aromatics for the Pan con Pollo sauce, add a couple of spoonfuls of Relajo Spice Mix.
Notes:
- How to disassemble a Rotisserie Chicken: Place the chicken breast side up, run a knife down the center of the chicken, and find the bone. Cut just off to one side and slice top-to-bottom down the bone. Next, run the knife down the other side of the breast, along the leg and wing, cutting between the leg/wing and breast.
- The whole breast should be removed easily now. Repeat on the other side. Gently pull the leg from the joint until it separates. If it doesn’t come easily, you can use your knife and place a little pressure on the joint to help it come free. Repeat the process for the wings. Alternatively, you can pull the meat from the chicken, discarding the skin and bones before adding it to the sauce. However, I highly recommend disassembling the chicken and leaving the bone to help develop more flavor in the sauce.
- Store leftover Pan con Pollo sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for three days.
- First, let it cool for five minutes or so when blending hot liquid, then transfer it to a blender, filling only halfway. Put the lid on, leaving one corner open. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel to catch splatters and pulse until smooth.
More Chicken Recipes:
- Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry
- Chicken Tikka Masala
- Thai Sweet Chili Chicken
- String Bean Chicken
- Sichuan Mala Chicken
Watch How to Make Pan con Pollo
📖 Recipe
Pan con Pollo
Tools
- Immersion blender
Ingredients
For the Sauce:
- 5 fresh tomatoes , chopped
- 1- 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil , olive oil, canola, or vegetable oil
- 1 large yellow onion , chopped
- 1 Poblano pepper or bell pepper (any color), chopped
- 8 cloves garlic , minced
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Kosher salt , to taste
- 3 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 cups hot water
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 Chile Ancho
- 1 Chile Guajillo or Chile California
- 1 Chile Pasilla
- 3 Chile Arbol optional ( For a spicier sauce)
- 1 packets sazon goya culantro y achiote
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon knorr chicken flavor bouillon adjust to taste
- 1 store-bought rotisserie chicken ,Disassemble the chicken into large pieces or leftover turkey from Thanksgiving
To Assemble:
- 12 or more large hoagie rolls, bolillo, or telera , as needed
- 1/2 cabbage , shredded or 16 leaves remain lettuce
- 1 bunch Watercress
- 2 English cucumbers , unpeeled and sliced in thin slices
- 10 radishes , thinly sliced
- 1 large white or red onion , cut in half, and thinly sliced
- 2 large firm tomatoes sliced
- yellow mustard , as needed
- Mayonnaise , as needed
Instructions
- Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large saucepan. When hot, add the chile arbol, chile guajillo, Chile Pasilla, and chile ancho and saute, stirring for 1 to 2 minutes or until the oil begins to turn a bit orange from the chiles.
- Add the garlic, fresh tomatoes, poblanos pepper, and onion, and cook over medium-low heat until the fresh vegetables soften, occasionally stirring about 10 minutes. Add the crushed canned tomato, rinse the can with 2 cups of hot water, and add the water to the pan; season with chicken bouillon and sazon goya culantro y achiote, sugar, black pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. Bring to a boil and immediately reduce heat to low, stirring and constantly scraping the bottom of the pan.
- Using an immersion or standard blender, process the mixture in batches until smooth enough for your taste. (If using a standard blender, take care not to fill the jar more than half full per batch, leave the hole in the lid open, and cover with a clean dishtowel to allow the heat to escape), and pour it back into the saucepan.
- Add the disassembled bone-in rotisserie chicken and bay leaves to the saucepan to help the sauce develop more flavor, and bring the sauce to a simmer and cook, occasionally stirring, until it has deepened in color and reduced slightly, about 30 minutes (if the sauce begins to scorch, lower the heat). The sauce is done when the sauce is thickened and no longer watery.
- Discard the skin and bones from the chicken. Using two forks, shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Return the chicken meat to the stew. Bring the stew just to a simmer. Taste and adjust the season with salt and pepper, if needed. Remove the bay leaves.
How to Assemble Pan con Pollo
- On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, assemble all vegetables. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 400° F
- Toast your Bolillo Rolls on the middle rack of the oven, either on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or directly on the grates, for about 10 minutes, flipping it halfway through.
- Place toasted Bolillo Rolls on each plate, cut lengthwise, and spread mayonnaise on one side of the bread. On the other side, spread mustard and top each piece of bread with shredded cabbage or two pieces of lettuce, cucumber slices, a couple of onions, fresh tomatoes, and radish slices.
- Mound the shredded chicken into each bread, scoop a small spoonful of sauce onto each Pan con Pollo, and top with watercress or cilantro. Repeat the process with the remaining Bolillo Rolls. Buen provecho! 😋🍻
Notes
- How to disassemble a Rotisserie Chicken: Place the chicken breast side up, run a knife down the center of the chicken, and find the bone. Cut just off to one side and slice top-to-bottom down the bone. Next, run the knife down the other side of the breast, along the leg and wing, cutting between the leg/wing and breast.
- The whole breast should be removed easily now. Repeat on the other side. Gently pull the leg from the joint until it separates. If it doesn't come easily, you can use your knife and place a little pressure on the joint to help it come free. Repeat the process for the wings. Alternatively, you can pull the meat from the chicken, discarding the skin and bones before adding it to the sauce. However, I highly recommend disassembling the chicken and leaving the bone to help develop more flavor in the sauce.
- Store leftover Pan con Pollo sauce in the refrigerator in an airtight container for three days.
- When blending hot liquid, first let it cool for five minutes or so, then transfer it to a blender, filling only halfway. Put the lid on, leaving one corner open. Cover the lid with a kitchen towel to catch splatters and pulse until smooth.
All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
