This pollo asado recipe creates a juicy grilled chicken dinner that starts with a quick and easy lime juice, Mexican spices and achiote marinade. Use my recipe tips and video to make a fantastic Cinco de Mayo meal!

Grilled and roasted meats are very popular in Mexican cuisine. From chicken fajitas to barbacoa beef and chipotle carne asada, Mexicans are skilled at creating dishes with a great balance of smoky and spicy flavors.

What is Pollo Asado?

The Spanish word “pollo” translated to English means “chicken”, and asada (or asado) means “roasted” or “barbecued”.

Pollo asada (also spelled pollo asado) is a flavorful marinated chicken dish with roots tied to Mexico and Cuba. The Mexican pollo asado marinade features freshly squeezed citrus juices and a Mexican spice blend, including achiote, which gives the dish a beautiful red color.

The chicken pieces are almost always grilled over indirect heat, but as the name implies, it is sometimes roasted in the oven. Here I use chicken thighs, but other cuts of chicken can include chicken breast.

Pollo Asado Recipe Ingredients

• Chicken– You’ll need 5 pounds of bone-in chicken for this Mexican chicken recipe. The budget-friendly route is to buy what’s known as a “whole fryer chicken”, which you can then cut into individual pieces. If you aren’t comfortable breaking down a chicken into pieces yourself, get one that’s already broken down.

💲💲 MONEY SAVING TIP:
Many people aren’t aware of this, but most grocery stores with a butcher will break down a whole fryer chicken for you at no charge. All you have to do is buy the whole fryer from that store and then take it to the butcher counter and ask! 

• Achiote paste– Achiote paste (also known as recado) is a flavorful spice made by grinding annatto seeds and combining them with vinegar, garlic and other spices. Generally, the paste is sold in small, 4-ounce blocks.
  
  Deep red in color, achiote has a slightly peppery, smoky flavor. You can read more about achiote paste in my post Achiote and the Annatto Seed.

Where to buy achiote paste

Look for achiote powder and paste in the ethnic foods aisle of most larger grocery stores. If you’re unable to find it there, almost all Latin markets carry it.

Achiote paste substitute

If you need a substitute, it’s easy to make. For this pollo asado recipe, you’ll need 2 ounces of paste. To make the substitute, combine the following ingredients together in a small bowl:

• 3 tbsp paprika
• 2 tbsp white vinegar
• 2 tsp dried Mexican oregano
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin

Looking for other ways to use achiote paste?
Make my recipe for Yucatan Chicken Tostadas or Achiote Pan Seared Chicken.

How to Make Pollo Asado

1. Marinate the chicken.

🎯 Important tip on marinating meat:

Please, forget everything you’ve ever been told about meat needing to marinate for hours or days on end. It is NOT necessary!

The purpose of marinating is not to develop flavor deep inside of the meat, it’s to create a flavorful, crispy crust on the outside. Sadly, the longer you marinate poultry with an acidic base, the more likely it is that your chicken will be chewy, rubbery, and/or mushy.

To summarize, chicken should not be marinated with an acid for longer than 4 hours. That’s it!

2. Prepare the grill.

To prevent your pollo asado from burning, it’s important to set up your grill for indirect cooking. This just means that one side of the grill will be hotter than the other.

For indirect cooking on a charcoal grill, place your lit charcoal across half of the grill and leave the other half empty.

To indirect cook on a gas grill, only turn half of the burners on.

3. Grill your pollo asado.

Remove the chicken from the pollo asado marinade and shake off any excess.

Immediately discard the marinade! It contains bacteria from the raw chicken and is not safe to eat or use as a marinade again.

Place the pieces skin side down on the direct heat side of the grill, close the lid and let it cook for 10 minutes. Open the lid and move the pieces to the indirect heat side of the grill. You can flip the pieces over if you’d like to, but it isn’t necessary.

Close the lid and continue cooking for another 20 minutes, or until the chicken internal temp reaches 165°F on a probe cooking thermometer.

Mexican Chicken Recipe Video

See the pollo asado recipe video in the recipe card for tips on grilling chicken, and to watch me make the pollo asado recipe from start to finish.

Pollo Asado Recipe Serving Suggestions

Anything that you enjoy eating with grilled chicken will be delicious with Mexican grilled chicken. Good choices include this Mexican rice recipe or mashed potatoes, grilled cactus, and Mexican black beans and corn.