• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Umami Days

Umami Days

Meaty with a dash of veggies

  • Recipes
    • By meal
      • Breakfast
      • Lunch / dinner
      • Snacks
    • By main ingredient
      • Poultry
      • Meat
      • Seafood
      • Eggs
      • Mushrooms
      • Tofu
      • Vegetables
    • By carb
      • Rice
      • Noodles
      • Bread
  • Kitchen
    • Kitchen how-tos
    • Cooking ingredients
    • Kitchen tools
  • Food Tales
    • Edible Garden
    • Dining
  • Newsletter
  • Recipes
    • By meal
      • Breakfast
      • Lunch / dinner
      • Snacks
    • By main ingredient
      • Poultry
      • Meat
      • Seafood
      • Eggs
      • Mushrooms
      • Tofu
      • Vegetables
    • By carb
      • Rice
      • Noodles
      • Bread
  • Kitchen
    • Kitchen how-tos
    • Cooking ingredients
    • Kitchen tools
  • Food Tales
    • Edible Garden
    • Dining
  • Newsletter

Spanish garlic chicken (pollo al ajillo)

03.07.2017 (Updated: 03.03.2025) in Lunch / Dinner, Main Courses

Subtly sweet, tangy and bursting with garlicky goodness, there are only nine ingredients (plus salt and pepper) required to make this delicious dish. Serve with rice or bread. Serve with rice or bread. You definitely want carbs to soak up that lovely sauce.

Spanish garlic chicken (pollo al ajillo)

Chicken wings went into my pollo aj ajillo because that was what I had. You can use drumsticks or thighs, or even a whole chicken chopped through the bone into serving pieces.

Flouring seasoned chicken before lightly frying in olive oil

Whichever cut you choose, season well with salt and pepper, and make sure to really work the seasonings into the meat. Then toss the chicken in flour, shaking off any excess and lightly fry in olive oil. If you’re wondering if flouring is necessary, it is that flour coating the chicken that will thicken the sauce later.

Sauteeing garlic, thyme and bay leaves in olive oil

The spice base is a combination of garlic, thyme and bay leaves. Saute until aromatic and the garlic is starting to brown around the edges. Do not hurry up this process to really draw out the flavors and aroma of the three ingredients.

Pouring white wine into pan with with sauteed garlic, thyme and bay leaves

After sauteeing the garlic, thyme and bay leaves sufficiently, pour in white wine. Leave to boil until reduced. Reducing removes the strong alcoholic smell and flavor of the wine leaving only the richness that will become part of the lovely sauce.

Adding broth to pan and dropping in lightly fried chicken

Once the wine has reduced, pour in chicken broth. Take your lightly fried chicken and spread in the pan. Ideally, in one layer so that each piece is touching the liquid.

Simmering chicken in white wine, broth, garlic, thyme and bay leaves

Braise the chicken until cooked through and the cooking liquid has reduced and thickened. Drizzle in the lemon juice and shake the pan repeatedly. Do not be tempted to stir because the chicken is already very tender at this point and you don’t want them to break into pieces.

Transfer you pollo al ajillo to a serving bowl or plate, or individual plates or bowls, and make sure to drizzle all the pan juices over the chicken pieces.

Spanish garlic chicken (pollo al ajillo)
Spanish garlic chicken (pollo al ajillo)
Connie Veneracion
To get the best flavors, use good quality wine and do not substitute water for the chicken broth. Take time too when sauteeing the garlic, thyme and bay leaves to create a tasty and aromatic base.
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 40 minutes mins
Total Time 50 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Spanish
Servings 4 people

Ingredients
  

  • 1 kilogram chicken bone-in and cut into serving-size pieces
  • salt
  • pepper
  • 1 whole head garlic
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme or about two sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 cup sweet white wine
  • 1 cup chicken bone broth
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • finely chopped lemon zest (optional)

Instructions
 

  • Pat the chicken dry with paper towels and place in a bowl.
  • Sprinkle with a tablespoon of salt and a quarter teaspoon of pepper.
  • Mix well working the salt and pepper into the meat.
  • Cover the bowl and set aside.
  • Peel the garlic and thinly slice each clove.
  • Add the flour to the chicken, cover the bowl and shake well to coat each piece of chicken lightly with flour.
  • Heat the olive oil in a wide shallow pan.
  • Lightly brown the chicken pieces, turning them around in the oil for even coloring. You are not cooking the chicken through at this point but merely searing them.
  • Once very lightly browned, scoop out and set aside.
  • Pour off the oil leaving only about two tablespoonfuls.
  • Reheat the oil and saute the garlic, thyme and bay leaves until the garlic slices start to brown.
  • Pour in the wine. Allow to boil, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced to half.
  • Pour in the chicken broth.
  • Add the browned chicken. Cover the pan, lower the heat and braise the chicken for about 20 minutes. During this time, the flour coating the chicken will thicken the sauce as it reduces.
  • Drizzle the lemon juice over the chicken and shake the pan gently to blend.
  • Taste the sauce, add more salt and pepper, if needed.
  • Cover the pan once more and simmer for another five minutes.
  • Arrange the chicken pieces on a platter or in a shallow bowl.
  • Pour the sauce (with all the garlic) over and around them.
  • Sprinkle with mint leaves and lemon zest.
  • Serve the pollo aj ajillo with rice or crusty bread.
Pin Send Print

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, the blog owner earns commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

In the spotlight

Slow cooked beef bone marrow soup

Slow cooker bone marrow soup

Stir fried noodles, Chinese sausage and bok choy

Stir fried noodles, Chinese sausage and bok choy

Chicken empanadas in basket

Chicken Empanadas

A stack of pancakes, made from scratch, topped with butter and drizzled with honey

Make perfect fluffy pancakes from scratch

Shrimp spring rolls

Hungry for more?

Subscribe to the newsletter to get the latest posts in your inbox.

No spam. Read the privacy policy.

More Chicken, Poultry

Thai chicken curry

Thai chicken curry

Chicken, egg and celery soup

Chicken, egg and celery soup

Sweet sour chicken karaage

Sweet sour chicken karaage

Scarborough Fair chicken stew

Scarborough Fair chicken stew

Sidebar

Connie Veneracion, 2020

Hi, I’m Connie!

Home cook and writer by passion, photographer by necessity, and good food, coffee and wine lover forever. I write recipes, cooking tips and food stories. No AI is used in creating content for this blog.

More about me and Umami Days.

  • About
  • Privacy
  • Copyright
  • No AI
  • Contact

Created by a human for humans · Copyright © 2025 Connie Veneracion · All Rights Reserved