Aji Rojo Chicken Stir Fry with Bell Peppers & Rice

A good stir fry is one of the fastest dinners you can make. A great one needs a sauce with actual backbone. Aji rojo provides it.

Rocoto pepper brings a fruity, building heat that holds up under high heat — unlike many sauces that flatten out in a hot wok. Combined with garlic, ginger, and soy, it creates a stir fry sauce that's distinctly Peruvian in character but fits perfectly into the weeknight rotation you already have.

Aji Rojo Chicken Stir Fry Recipe

Serves: 4
Time: 25 minutes
Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

• 1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 3 tablespoons Aji Rojo sauce, divided
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons neutral oil (avocado or vegetable)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
• 1 cup snap peas
• Cooked white rice, for serving
• Sesame seeds and scallions for garnish

Instructions

1. Marinate the chicken. Toss chicken pieces with 1 tablespoon rojo, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and the cornstarch. Let sit 10 minutes while you prep the vegetables.
2. Make the sauce. Whisk together remaining 2 tablespoons rojo, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Set aside.
3. Cook the chicken. Heat oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat until smoking. Add chicken in a single layer. Don't stir for 2 minutes — let it sear. Toss and cook 2–3 more minutes until cooked through. Remove to a plate.
4. Cook the vegetables. Same pan, same heat. Add garlic and ginger, stir 30 seconds. Add bell peppers and snap peas, toss 2–3 minutes until crisp-tender.
5. Combine. Return chicken to the pan, pour sauce over everything, toss well to coat. Cook 1 minute until sauce thickens slightly and coats everything.
6. Serve. Over white rice. Top with sesame seeds and sliced scallions.

Why Rojo Works Here

Most stir fry sauces are built on hoisin, oyster sauce, or chili garlic sauce. They work. But rojo's rocoto base has a complexity those sauces don't — a fruitiness from the pepper itself that you can taste underneath the heat. It's not a replacement for those sauces so much as a distinctly Peruvian alternative that makes the dish yours.

The result is familiar enough to feel comfortable and interesting enough to make someone ask what's in it.

Tips

• High heat throughout. Stir fry lives and dies by temperature. Low heat = steamed vegetables and gray chicken.
• Don't crowd the wok. Cook chicken in batches if needed. Crowding drops the temperature and you lose the sear.
• Chicken thighs over breasts. Thighs stay juicy at high heat. Breasts dry out fast in a wok.

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