Stranger Foods

Photograph of Trini brown stew chicken with hot pepper sauce.

Trinidad and TobagoTrini brown stew chicken with hot pepper sauce

Serves 4 | Prep 25 mins | Cook 1 hr 10 mins

Brown stew is a distinctively Caribbean dish where the meat is browned in caramelised sugar then cooked in a sauce rich in herbs and spices to produce a thick, flavoursome gravy. The combination of Indian spices, European herbs and Latin American allspice and chilli is also really characteristic of Caribbean cooking and a legacy of the islands being something of a crossroads throughout history.

Source: The Spicery

Ingredients

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4 chicken legs or large thighs, (skin removed if you prefer)
1 large carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
1 bunch spring onions, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely grated or crushed
fresh ginger, finely grated or chopped to make 1 tbsp
2 limes, 1 zested then both halved for juicing
1½ tbsps sugar
Rice and greens, to serve

Chicken marinade spices

1 tbsp mixed herbs

Brown stew spices

2 tsp mild curry powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp mixed spice
½ tsp chilli flakes

Pepper sauce spices

2 tsp chilli flakes
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Instructions

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Mix the chicken with the carrot, spring onions, garlic, ginger, juice of 1 lime, chicken marinade spices and 1 tsp salt.
Soak the pepper sauce spices in 100 ml freshly boiled water from the kettle.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wide pan over a high heat. Add the sugar to the hot oil, stir it around, and carefully cook for or until it first dissolves then beings to caramelise and turn brown, watching all the time.
Add the chicken (including all the marinade) and stir to coat in the hot sugar and oil - be very careful as the sugar is extremely hot!
Cook on a high heat, stirring occasionally, for or until the chicken if starting to caramelise on both sides.
Add 150 ml water and the brown stew spices then cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for and until the chicken is cooked through to the bone and the sauce if rich and thick (adding a splash of water if necessary).
before the stew if ready, cook the rice and greens.
Blend the soaked pepper sauce spices (including the soaking water) with the juice and zest of 1 lime and a pinch of salt into a smooth sauce.
Serve the brown chicken stew with the rice, greens and pepper sauce on the side.

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