Chicken Kelaguen

Since growing up in Guam, there is one local food which always reminds and gives me the urge to cook this delicious dish from time to time. More than a decade ago, my mom would always buy the best chicken kelaguen from the Paseo stadium in Agana. The wood shack parlors next to the stadium offered one of the best local foods like red rice, bbq chicken and finadene. Sadly, they no longer exist today and the only lucky time you can eat them is at the fiestas.

This is chicken kelaguen. Basically, it’s cooked chicken chopped and mixed together with onion, green onion, chili pepper, black pepper, salt and lemon powder (see the yellow/blue can below). You can use lemon juice, but the lemon powder is the key. You also can add coconut milk but if it’s hard to obtain, you don’t really need it. Let me share with you how to cook chicken kelaguen at your home without having to fly out to Guam.

Get the skinless and boneless chicken thighs (5 – 6 pieces) and sprinkle with salt, black pepper and garlic powder. Lay them on a foiled baking pan to prevent leakage. Bake at 375 F degrees for about 35 minutes and broil for 2 minutes to get the nice brown color. No need to flip it. Cool it and chop to pieces.

Now mix the chicken with the finely chopped onions (1/3 – 1/2 of medium onion), green onions, chili pepper (optional), black pepper, salt and the lemon powder. Again, the key is the lemon powder from this yellow/blue can.

We like to eat this like the lettuce wrap, and it goes very well. If you are thinking of a new Christmas dish for your friends, this is it! I recommend using at least 10 chicken thighs. Enjoy!