Stew Chicken (and variants)

Stew chicken is a wonderful flavourful stewed dish common across the caribbean. It has the iconic smell and look from the burned sugar. It is easy to make and a comfort food. Paired well with rice, roti and a cucumber salad. Pictured below is the curry stew chicken variant.

Ingredients

• Sugar (1-2 tbsp)
• Thyme (2-3 sprigs)
• Scotch Bonnet Pepper (1, optional)
• Chicken (¾ - 1 kg, with bones, ie. thighs, drumsticks, etc…)
• Water (1-2 cups)
• Juice from 1 Lime

Marinade

• Ketchup (1-2 tbsp)
• Shallot (1 finely chopped)
• Garlic cloves (2-3 crushed or finely chopped)
• Garlic powder (½ tsp) OPTIONAL
• Onion powder (1 tsp) OPTIONAL
• Green Seasoning (1-2 tbsp)
• Lime juice (1-2 limes)
• Soy sauce (1-2 tbsp) or Salt (1-2 tsp)
• Black pepper (¼ tsp)

Green Seasoning

Green seasoning is a staple in many dishes in Trinidad cooking. The key ingredients are the green herbs, which is typically thyme, shado beni (culantro aka Shado beni, or cilantro). These are combined with the remaining ingredients, and is typically a custom per household. You can make a large batch and freeze the unused portion for later use!

• Green herbs (Cilantro|Culantro|Thyme|Parsley)
• Pepper (Bell, or Pimento)
• Garlic
• Onion (Optional)
• Vinegar or Lime Juice (Optional)
• Water

During this recipie I used the following:

• Cilantro (1 tsp)
• Parsley (1 tsp)
• Green onion (1 shoot)
• Garlic (1 clove)
• Ginger (1 cm cube)
• Water (as needed)

Method

• Add the ingredients to a large bowl
• Add large pieces of chicken to maranade, marinate for at least 30 minutes (longer is fine)
• Set heat to medium for a stewing pot (cast iron, steel, etc…)
• Add sugar, allow it to turn dark brown and foam
• Add marinated chicken, sear on both sides for 3-5 minutes
• Add 1-2 cups of water to the marinade bowl to get remaining marinade, add to stewing pot and allow it to come to a boil
• Add thyme and whole Scotch Bonnet pepper do not burst
• Cover with lid
• Stew for 15-20 minutes, remove lid and allow liquid to reduce by half
  • Or reduce liquid to your gravy preference
• Remove thyme sprigs and Scotch Bonnet pepper

fin.

Variants

There are two variants I like to make: Curry stew chicken and cinnamon stew chicken.

Cinnamon stew chicken

Additional Ingredients

• Cinnamon (1-2 sticks)
• Red Bell Pepper (1 sliced thinly)
• Medium Onion (1 sliced thinly)

Method

• Same as the base above, except after searing add cinnamon sticks
• 15 minutes after lid is on, add onions and peppers on top do not stir
• Cover and continue as above

fin.

Curry stew chicken

Additional Ingredients

• Curry powder (1 tbsp)
• Potates (3 sliced into medallions

Method

• Same as the base above, except add curry powder to marinade
• 15 minutes after lid is on, add potatoes and mix in to the sauce
• Cover and continue as before

fin.

© 2017–2022 David Kalliecharan