Chicken simmered in a rich, reddish-orange palm nut sauce that is deeply savory, a classic of Gabonese cuisine. Serve piping hot with white rice, cassava, or steamed plantains.
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg free-range chicken, cut into pieces
- 500 g canned palm nut sauce
- 2 pieces yellow onions
- 3 pieces ripe tomatoes
- 3 cloves garlic cloves
- 1 piece fresh habanero or Scotch bonnet pepper
- 2 tbsp peanut oil
- 400 ml hot water
- to taste fine salt
- to taste freshly ground black pepper
- 300 g white rice
- 0.25 bunches flat-leaf parsley
Method
- Pat the chicken pieces dry, season with salt and pepper, and let them come to room temperature while prepping the vegetables; the skin and meat should feel completely dry to the touch.
- Thinly slice the onions, mince or crush the garlic, and grate or finely chop the tomatoes; leave the chili whole for mild heat, or pierce it only if you prefer a hotter dish.
- Heat the oil in a Dutch oven, add the chicken pieces skin-side or meaty-side down, and sear without moving them at first; they should turn golden brown and release easily from the pot.
- Transfer the chicken to a plate, add the onions to the same pot, and cook until softened and lightly caramelized, then stir in the garlic just until fragrant.
- Add the tomatoes and cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot; the base is ready when it thickens, looks glossy, and no longer smells of raw tomato.
- Return the chicken to the pot, pour in the palm nut sauce, and loosen with hot water until you reach a sauce that coats the meat without being watery.
- Add the whole chili, partially cover, and simmer gently; the dish is ready when the chicken is fork-tender and the sauce coats the back of a spoon.
- Uncover toward the end of cooking to reduce and concentrate the sauce if needed, then adjust the salt and pepper; discard or remove the chili once it has infused the sauce to your taste.
- Cook the white rice separately until fluffy and tender, then serve the chicken piping hot with plenty of sauce, a sprinkle of chopped flat-leaf parsley, and your choice of side.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 719.8 kcal
- Protein
- 39.43 g
- Carbohydrate
- 33.44 g
- Fat
- 46.53 g
- Fibre
- 2.5 g
- Calcium
- 31.08 mg
- Iron
- 0.92 mg
- Magnesium
- 21.02 mg
