Flavors · Aguascalientes

Pollo de San Marcos

Chicken pieces browned and slowly cooked in a tomato, onion, and garlic sauce seasoned with cinnamon, clove, and oregano, which in many recipes includes dried fruit. It’s the dish associated with the Feria Nacional de San Marcos in the city of Aguascalientes.

Traditional dish from Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes

Also known as: pollo estilo San Marcos, pollo de Aguascalientes

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Aguascalientes
Aguascalientes
Pollo de San Marcos — Aguascalientes, Mexico
Pollo de San Marcos
Pollo de San Marcos — Aguascalientes, Mexico
Pollo de San Marcos
Pollo de San Marcos — Aguascalientes, Mexico
Pollo de San Marcos
Pollo de San Marcos — Aguascalientes, Mexico
Pollo de San Marcos

Pollo de San Marcos — Aguascalientes, Mexico

Pollo de San Marcos is a homestyle chicken from the city of Aguascalientes. The pieces are browned and then slowly cooked in a tomato, onion, and garlic sauce seasoned with cinnamon, clove, oregano, and a pinch of sugar. Many recipes add white wine and dried fruit, such as dried peach and pear, which give the sauce a sweet-savory flavor.

The name comes from the Feria Nacional de San Marcos, the city’s big annual festival held between April and May around the San Marcos neighborhood and garden. The chicken is served at the fair’s food stalls and is also called pollo de Aguascalientes. There are different versions: in some, the chicken is served with potatoes, carrot, onion, and chiles en vinagre, without the fruit.

The combination of meat and fruit appears in other dishes from the state, like chile de Aguascalientes, and reflects the region’s fruit-growing tradition, known for guava and grapes. Pollo de San Marcos is family-and-festival food, prepared at home year-round and especially sought after during the fair.

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Where it comes from

Aguascalientes , Aguascalientes
Dish associated with the Feria Nacional de San Marcos in the city of Aguascalientes, where it is also called pollo de Aguascalientes.

Ingredients

Chicken pieces, tomato, onion, garlic, cinnamon, clove, oregano, and sugar; in many recipes, white wine and dried fruit such as peach and pear. In other versions, potato, carrot, and chiles en vinagre.

How it is eaten

Hot, with the sauce on top, served with rice and tortillas.

When it is eaten

All year round, and especially during the Feria Nacional de San Marcos, between April and May.

Your questions

Questions about Pollo de San Marcos

What is pollo de San Marcos?

It’s a chicken cooked in a tomato, onion, and spice sauce, often with dried fruit, typical of the city of Aguascalientes.

Why is the dish called pollo de San Marcos?

Because of the Feria Nacional de San Marcos, Aguascalientes’ big annual festival, where the dish is served at food stalls.

Does pollo de San Marcos include fruit?

Many recipes include dried fruit, such as peach and pear, but there are versions with only potato, carrot, and chiles en vinagre.

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