Hispanic Heritage · Uruguay

El Interior

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Pamplona de pollo

Descubre

Uruguay’s interior introduces pamplona de pollo: chicken wrapped around a savory filling and cooked until the outside is browned. Cheese, pepper, and bacon bring several flavors into a single slice.

La Gente

An even piece of chicken rolls more easily. Secure the filling, cook through as directed, and rest before slicing so the juices and cheese settle. The cross-section is part of the dish’s appeal.

Sabor

The interior cooks with the fire and the herb cupboard of the Italian and Spanish grandparents: oregano, garlic, pepper, a little paprika, and salt on everything that came off an animal. Cheese and bacon do the richness. Sweetness arrives only at the end, in the dulce de leche.

Spice DNA · Smoke high · Herb medium · Sweet none · Heat low · Acid low

Seasonings to explore

Minced Garlic in Olive Oil. In the pamplona's seasoning. Adds a savory garlic base.
Oregano, whole. In the pamplona and on everything else on the grill.
Black Pepper, ground. In the seasoning.
Paprika. In the seasoning, for color under the bacon.
Thyme leaves. A pinch in the filling, which some families do.
Crushed Red Pepper. For the ones who want it. Most of the interior does not.
Chimichurri Sauce, 8 oz. For the table beside it. Uruguay makes chimichurri too, and does not take questions about it.

From your market: boneless chicken breasts or a pork loin, cooked ham, bacon, mozzarella, roasted red peppers, green olives, eggs, and kitchen string. Caul fat if a butcher has it; bacon wrapped around the outside is what most people use now and what the recipe below does. Badia does not sell the parrilla. The oven works, and the interior has been forgiving about this since the first pamplona left Florida.

Cocina

Pamplona de pollo

Chicken breast opened flat, filled, rolled, wrapped in bacon, and cooked slow. The Uruguayan roll of the parrilla, from Florida, 1963.

Serves 4

4 large boneless chicken breasts
2 tbsp Badia Minced Garlic in Olive Oil
1 tbsp Badia Oregano, whole
1 tsp Badia Black Pepper, ground
1 tsp Badia Paprika
¼ tsp Badia Thyme leaves
Salt
8 slices cooked ham
8 slices mozzarella
1 cup roasted red pepper strips
½ cup green olives, chopped
2 hard-boiled eggs, sliced
12 slices bacon
Kitchen string

Open the chicken. Butterfly each breast and open it like a book. Lay it between plastic and pound it to an even ¼ inch, wide enough to roll.
Season. Mix the garlic, oregano, pepper, paprika, thyme, and salt. Rub it over the inside of each breast.
Fill. Lay two slices of ham, two of mozzarella, some pepper strips, olives, and a few slices of egg across each, leaving an inch bare at the far edge.
Roll and wrap. Roll tightly from the near edge. Wrap three slices of bacon around each roll, overlapping. Tie with string at three points.
Cook. On the parrilla over medium embers, turning every few minutes, 35 to 40 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the chicken reads 165°F. In the oven: 375°F on a rack over a pan, 35 minutes, then 3 minutes under the broiler for the bacon.
Rest and slice. 10 minutes, then cut into thick rounds with a sharp knife so the spiral shows.
Serve with chimichurri, a green salad, bread, and a Tannat. Then torta fritas if it rains. It will not, but make them anyway.

Pueblos del Interior

Florida · Durazno · Tacuarembó · Rivera · Paso de los Toros · Salto · Paysandú · Fray Bentos · Mercedes · Trinidad · Minas · Treinta y Tres · Melo · Artigas · San José de Mayo · Young · Dolores