Back
sancocho

This traditional Panamanian dish has many different versions with slight variations depending on regional or personal preference.

  • Prep: 20 minutes
  • Cook: 40 minutes
  • Total time: 1 hour
  • Recipe serves: 6

Ingredients

  • 1 roasting chickens (cut into pieces, you can also just use 3-4 whole chicken breasts)
  • 3 tsps salt
  • 1 tbsp coriander (minced)
  • 1 tsp dried oregano
  • 3 garlic cloves (minced)
  • 2 tsps olive oil
  • 1 onion (large, chopped into bite-sized pieces)
  • 3lbs yucca roots (peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces, also called cassava)
  • 4 cups chicken stock (the kind bought in a box is fine)
  • Pepper
  • Salt

Instructions

  1. Rinse the chicken and pat dry.
  2. In a small bowl, mix the salt, cilantro, oregano, garlic, and olive oil. Rub the mix all over the chicken and let it marinate for 10 minutes.
  3. In the meantime, peel and chop the yucca and the onion. Set aside.
  4. Heat a large pot over medium heat. Place the chicken in the pot, place a lid on it, and let it sweat for about 7 minutes.
  5. Add the onion and the chicken stock. Bring the soup to a boil and then let it simmer over medium low heat until the chicken is cooked through and soft.
  6. Raise the heat to medium and add the yucca. Bring the pot to a gentle simmer and cook until the yucca is cooked through (approximately 10 minutes).
  7. Serve with white rice on the side that is added into the soup when you are about to eat it.

NOTE: This soup keeps well frozen and only gets more flavourful with time.

Tailor-made holidays

Flexible, custom-made holidays to Latin America created to match your exact requirements: our tailor-made itineraries are as unique as the clients for whom they are designed.

Design my trip

Papagaio

Your edit for Latin American inspiration

Our exciting range of articles on Latin America explore everything from iconic destinations and lesser-known cultural gems to delicious traditional recipes. You’ll also find exclusive travel tips, first-hand client reviews and the chance to get your personal questions answered by our travel experts.

View Extraordinary Inspiration
Bartolome, Galápagos

Meet our team

Real Latin american experts

  • Rosie profile
    Rosie Kay - Travel Expert

  • Charlotte
    Charlotte Daubeney - Travel Expert

    Charlotte's fascination with Latin America began with a family holiday to Belize. She went on to study Spanish in school and at university before spending a year living in Santiago, Chile.

  • Sophie
    Sophie Barber - Travel Expert

    Sophie lived in Chile before joining us and has travelled extensively across Latin America, from Mexico to the furthest tip of Patagonia and beyond to Antarctica.

  • Juliet
    Juliet Ellwood - Travel Expert

    After graduating with a degree in Anthropology and History and having been fascinated by Latin America since childhood by the book featuring photos of Nazca, Juliet first visited the region in 2003. Since then, Juliet has visited the majority of countries in Latin America but has particularly extensive experience with Peru, a country she loves for many reasons but not least, its incredible archaeological richness and delicious food!

  • Hannah
    Hannah Waterhouse - Travel Expert

    Hannah had an early introduction to Latin America when her family moved to Ecuador and she returned to study in Buenos Aires for a year before backpacking across the continent.

  • Paul Winrow Giffin
    Paul Winrow-Giffin - Travel Expert

    After graduating in Computer Science, Paul spent seven months travelling from Colombia to Argentina and came home hooked on Latin America.

0 1 2 3 4 5