Jamaican Brown Stew Chicken
If you’re looking for a recipe that captures the heart of Jamaican home cooking, it’s this brown stew chicken. This dish includes tender, juicy pieces of chicken simmered in a rich gravy that is infused with herbs, spices and a touch of heat.
Servings: 4 - 6 servings
Calories: 278kcal
Ingredients
- 8 pieces raw chicken (mixed thighs and drumsticks) skin removed from thighs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder or granules
- 2 teaspoon onion powder or granules
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon all-spice or ground pimento
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon dark premium soy sauce or gravy browning
- 1 medium brown onion sliced
- 2 spring onions chopped
- 2 -3 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 inch piece of ginger finely chopped
- ½ medium green bell pepper sliced
- ½ medium red bell pepper sliced
- 1 small scotch bonnet chilli seeds remove and finely chopped
- 3 sprigs thyme
- 4 tablespoon cooking oil
- 3 tablespoon tomato ketchup
- 600ml chicken stock or 1 chicken stock cube in 600ml water
Instructions
- Season and marinate the chicken: In a large bowl, season the chicken with salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and all-spice. Sprinkle in the sugar then add in the soy sauce and mix to coat all the chicken.
- Add in the onions, spring onions, garlic, ginger, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, scotch bonnet chilli and thyme. Mix well to coat every piece then cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight for the best flavour.
- Brown the chicken: Place a large heavy duty pan on a medium heat, add the oil and allow to heat. While the oil is heating separate the marinade ingredients from the chicken and place the onions, spring onions, garlic, ginger, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, scotch bonnet chilli and thyme in a separate bowl.
- Carefully add the marinated chicken pieces to the pan and cook until the chicken has browned. Turn them and cook the other side of the pieces. This should take around 10 minutes.
- Cook the vegetables: Remove the browned chicken from the pan and set aside on a plate. Add the onions, spring onions, garlic, ginger, green bell pepper, red bell pepper, scotch bonnet chilli to the same pan and cook for 4 minutes until the vegetables soften.
- Make the stew: Mix in the ketchup and mix in the chicken stock then add the chicken pieces back into the pan. Add in the thyme then cover the pan with a lid and allow to simmer on a low to medium heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- After 30 minutes remove the lid, increase the heat to high and allow the chicken to cook uncovered for 10 minutes until the sauce thickens and it darkens in colour. Allow to stand for 5 minutes then serve with your desired side.