20 Minutes 
4 people
By Doreen Colondres
This marinade serves to roast a whole chicken and it also works to cook turkey or chicken pieces on a frying pan using the same ingredients. Just double the amount of ingredients if you are using it for a whole turkey so you get a good portion of the “sazón”. I usually cook and eat this dish at the begining of the week and then the following days I shred it in corn tacos with red cabbage, queso fresco and cilantro, on top of greens with lemon dressing and pepitas (pumpkin seeds) or even with white, green or yellow rice and “tostones” (fried mashed green plantains) to make my life easier during the week.
What you need to have:
- 1 (at least 3-pound) whole chicken
- 4 chiles guajillos, seeded, deveined
- 4 peeled garlic cloves
- 1 bitter orange (or 1 orange and 1 lemon if you don’t find it bitter)
- 1 teaspoon dry oregano
- ½ teaspoon achiote
- ½ bunch of cilantro
- Salt and pepper to taste
What you need to do:
- In a deep container, add the chiles and 1-2 cups of water to cover them with water. Let them rest for at least 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven at 400F.
- Wash the chicken with water, dry it and place it on a baking container, preferably with the legs tied together.
- In a blender or using a manual blender, mix the softened chiles with ½ cup of the water, the garlic, half the bunch of cilantro, the achiote, oregano and orange juice and beat well until you get a thick paste.
- Then proceed to add this marinade to the chicken with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook at 400F for about 1 1/4 hours or until the thermometer reads 165 degrees.
- Remove from the oven, let sit for about 10 minutes, then carve and serve.
- Garnish with the remaining cilantro.
