African Chicken Stew

This recipe delivers a flavoursome West African stew with slow-cooked herbed chicken in a rich, spicy tomato sauce

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If you ask any West African to mention five of the most popular foods in West Africa, I bet that tomato stew will be mentioned by all the respondents. A rather unsurprising and predictable outcome, I would think! Because stews are very much interwoven into the culinary fabric of West Africa. Every respectable household usually has a pot of soup or stew on-the-go. Stews are integral to the traditional African diet, and are consumed daily by many.

Lets talk about this African stew for a minute. This stew is flavoursome – a basic characteristic of most African stews. Take this Moroccan chicken stew spiced with dukkah a case-in-point. Oozing with flavour! But back to this African stew, which is as versatile as it is flavoursome. Versatile enough to be prepared with any kind of meat. Popular variants include beef stew, chicken stew, fish stew, snail stew.

And versatile enough to transcends categorisation.

And by that, I mean that this stew is decadent enough to make the special occasions menu.  In fact, in most parts of Africa, no Christmas feast is complete without a pot of this African stew. At least not in my household where I grew up in Southern Nigeria. Paradoxically, this stew is humble enough to play the role of a humble staple, tucked away in the refrigerator for emergency situations… such as unannounced visits from hordes of relatives.

You can serve it as an accompaniment to just about any other African staple foods such as gari, millet, plantain and rice. Or as a side dish for some African soups like okra soup, where they serve as flavour enhancers.

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African stews are easy to make. And this recipe essentially comes down to simmering a blend of tomatoes, onions and bell peppers with spices to achieve a sauce that is hearty and flavoursome. But this is one recipe that is so easy to get wrong. A good African stew should be full-bodied, and a perfect balance of all the flavours. A common rookie mistake is when the stew is cooked in a way that allows the tomatoes to overwhelm the rest of the ingredients. To achieve the perfect African stew, there’s just three steps you absolutely need to take;

Roast Your Vegetables – if you want to dial up the flavour of the peppers and tomatoes exponentially, then this step is a must!

Brown Your Chicken – browning the chicken teases out the flavours out of the meat, and you are rewarded with a stew packed with flavour.

Simmer! Simmer! Simmer!

So now we are ready to go, here’s the recipe below. Have fun making this..

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African Chicken Stew

Print Recipe

Add to Meal Plan: Select Course to Add: BreakfastLunchDinner This recipe has been added to your Meal Plan

A Flavoursome West African Stew with Slow-Cooked Herbed and Marinated Chicken in a rich, spicy Tomato Sauce

Servings	Prep Time
4 servings	20 minutes

Cook Time

2 hours

Servings Prep Time 4 servings 20 minutes

Cook Time 2 hours

African Chicken Stew Print Recipe Add to Meal Plan: Select Course to Add: BreakfastLunchDinner This recipe has been added to your Meal Plan A Flavoursome West African Stew with Slow-Cooked Herbed and Marinated Chicken in a rich, spicy Tomato Sauce Servings Prep Time 4 servings 20 minutes Cook Time 2 hours Servings Prep Time 4 servings 20 minutes Cook Time 2 hours

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade

• 4 chicken drumsticks
• 5 g fresh basil, chopped
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp black pepper

Stew

• 5 tomatoes *
• 2 onions *
• 1 red bell pepper **
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 scotch bonnet pepper ***
• 1 stock cube
• 4 tsp olive oil
• 50 g basil
• 200 ml tomato passata
• 1 tsp brown sugar ****
• 1 tbsp paprika
• salt
• pepper

Units:MetricUS Imperial

Instructions

Marinating the Chicken

1. Whisk together the oil, garlic, ginger, onion powder, chopped basil, salt and pepper in a bowl. Transfer the marinade to a sealable plastic bag with the chicken and shake to combine. Refrigerate overnight or for up to 12 hours.
2. When ready to cook, add 1 teaspoon of olive oil to a Dutch oven and when hot (but not smoking), fry the chicken on medium heat for 2 - 3 minutes per side to brown. Remove chicken from oven and set aside.

Stew

1. Chop the tomatoes, onions, bell pepper and garlic into large chunks. Drizzle 3 teaspoons of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt over the vegetables and roast in oven at 200 degrees for 18 minutes.
2. In a blender, add the roasted veggies, basil, scotch bonnet pepper and tomato passata. Blend to a smooth consistency.
3. To the remaining oil in the dutch oven from frying the chicken, add the pureed vegetables and fry for 2 - 3 minutes on medium heat. Add a stock cube (and salt if needed - I don't think it will be - but be guided by your palate) and paprika, turn the heat to low - medium and simmer covered for 30 minutes.
4. Add the chicken to the sauce, cover and continue to simmer for another 45 minutes. Taste after 45 minutes and add a teaspoon of brown sugar if needed. Simmer covered for another 5 - 10 minutes.
5. Serve with rice and steamed vegetables.

Recipe Notes

* use medium-sized onions and tomatoes

** large bell pepper

*** de-seed the scotch bonnet peppers before using to dial down the heat.

**** brown sugar is optional but I do recommend using some.

Is this recipe right for you?

The information shown is an estimate, and does not replace a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Did you make this recipe?

Please let me know how it turned out for you. Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #africaonyourplate.

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Emem

 

Afro-fusion Food Lover.
Sustainable Food Advocate.
Completely nuts about Avocado.