Chicken slow-simmered in a rich, velvety orange-hued palm nut sauce, served alongside white rice and golden fried plantains. A generous, approachable homemade version that stays true to the spirit of Congolese and Gabonese cooking.
Ingredients
- 800 g bone-in chicken pieces, preferably pasture-raised or organic
- 400 g canned palm nut pulp (sauce graine or palm fruit concentrate)
- 2 pieces yellow onions
- 3 pieces ripe tomatoes
- 3 cloves garlic
- to taste fresh Scotch bonnet or habanero chile
- 320 g long-grain white rice
- 2 pieces ripe but firm plantains
- 6 tbsp neutral oil
- 800 ml water
- 1 piece lime
- to taste fine sea salt
- to taste freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then let it rest at room temperature while preparing the vegetables; the meat should lose its refrigerator chill and look lightly glossy on the surface.
- Slice the onion, mince the garlic, coarsely chop the tomatoes, and slit the chile without crushing it if you prefer mild heat; set the lime aside for finishing.
- Heat the oil in a Dutch oven and brown the chicken on all sides, about eight to ten minutes, until the skin and edges take on a deep amber color; transfer to a plate.
- In the same Dutch oven, cook down the onion with a pinch of salt, about six to eight minutes, until soft, sweet, and lightly caramelized at the bottom of the pot.
- Add the garlic, tomatoes, and chile, then cook, stirring often, until you have a thick, glossy, concentrated base with no lingering raw tomato aroma.
- Return the chicken to the Dutch oven, pour in the palm nut sauce loosened with hot water, and bring to a gentle simmer with the lid slightly ajar until the sauce coats the back of a spoon and the chicken is fork-tender to the bone.
- While the stew simmers, rinse the rice until the water runs mostly clear, then cook in salted water until the grains are plump and distinct; remove from the heat and let rest before fluffing with a fork.
- Slice the plantains on a bias, then fry in a shallow layer of hot oil until caramelized around the edges and tender in the center; drain and season lightly with salt.
- Taste the sauce, remove the whole chile if the heat level is sufficient, and adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper, and a squeeze of fresh lime juice; the sauce should be rich, velvety, spicy, and clean on the finish.
- Serve the chicken piping hot with the white rice and golden plantains, ladling the palm nut sauce generously over top so the rice absorbs every drop.
Nutrition
Per serving
- Energy
- 718.9 kcal
- Protein
- 32.28 g
- Carbohydrate
- 45.73 g
- Fat
- 44.74 g
- Fibre
- 4.02 g
- Calcium
- 47.72 mg
- Iron
- 1.92 mg
- Magnesium
- 48.81 mg
