West African Chicken Food

WEST AFRICAN CHICKEN THIGHS

Steps:

• To make the paste: in a small bowl, mix together the paprika, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and cayenne; whisk in the canola oil.
• Trim the chicken thighs of any excess skin and fat; rinse under cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
• Coat chicken thighs with the paste; cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 4-8 hours.
• Sear the chicken thighs, skin side down over Direct Medium heat for 4 minutes, turning once halfway through searing time.
• Continue grilling over Indirect Medium heat for about 30-40 minutes or until the juices run clear and the meat is no longer pink; serve warm.

WEST AFRICAN CHICKEN YASSA

Steps:

• Place the chicken in a bowl and squeeze in the juice of 1½ lemons.
• Add the garlic and chilli.
• Mix to coat the chicken well and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat a hot barbecue, grill, griddle or dry frying pan.
• Remove the chicken from the marinade and brush it with oil.
• Place the chicken, skin-side towards the heat, on the barbecue, under the grill, on the griddle or in the pan, and cook for about 4-5 minutes on each side, until well colored and cooked through, but be careful not to let it dry out.
• While the chicken cooks, cut the onions into medium-thin slices.
• Heat a few drops of oil in a deep frying pan and fry the onions with the thyme for about 5-8 minutes until nice and brown, allowing their sweetness to come out.
• Remove the onions from the pan and set aside on a warm plate.
• Pour the juice of 1 lemon and the chicken stock into the pan, bring to the boil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Allow it to reduce slightly, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to get up all the taste.
• Arrange the chicken on a plate, top with the onions and pour the lemon sauce over it.
• Garnish with the remaining lemon half and serve.

WEST AFRICAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• Heat oil in a heavy pan and fry chicken and onion until golden.
• Add curry powder and cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
• Add remaining ingredients, bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

WEST AFRICAN PEANUT SOUP WITH CHICKEN

Steps:

• Chop peanuts, or crush them with the side of a knife, or pulse them in a food processor to chop roughly.
• Put oil in a deep skillet or medium saucepan over medium heat; a minute later, add onion, ginger and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add chicken and continue cooking for another 3 or 4 minutes, until just coloring. Add 1/2 cup peanuts and the cayenne and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Stir in the stock and the sweet potatoes, bring to a boil, and turn heat down to medium-low so the soup bubbles gently. Stir in tomatoes and collards, then cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in 1/4 cup peanut butter. Taste, adjust seasoning (you may want to add more peanut butter at this point) and serve, garnished with remaining peanuts.

SPICY AFRICAN CHICKEN STEW

Steps:

• Pour the hot stock over the peanut butter and stir until dissolved. Heat a very large pan and fry the onions in the oil for 5 mins to soften. Add the ginger, cayenne, if using, ½ tsp black pepper, coriander, cumin, chillies and bay and cook, stirring, for 2 mins.
• Tip in the tomatoes and the peanut stock, then stir in the chicken pieces. Put a lid on the pan and leave to simmer for 30 mins, stirring frequently to make sure the peanut butter doesn't stick to the base of the pan.
• Stir in the sweet potatoes, peppers and chopped coriander, then cook for 30 mins more. Serve sprinkled with the reserved coriander, with rice and lime wedges for squeezing over, if you like.

WEST AFRICAN-STYLE PEANUT STEW WITH CHICKEN

Steps:

• Season chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt and the black pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add half the chicken; cook until no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes, then transfer to a plate. Repeat with 1 tablespoon oil and remaining chicken.
• Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pot and reduce heat to medium. Add onion; cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, and remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt; cook, stirring, 30 seconds.
• Stir in broth, tomatoes, sweet potato, collard greens, and red bell peppers; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer, partially covered, until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
• Return chicken and accumulated juices to the pot. Return to a boil, then stir in peanut butter; simmer until incorporated and chicken is cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes. Garnish with chopped peanuts.

WEST AFRICAN CHICKEN STEW

Steps:

• Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven, cook chicken over medium heat in 2 teaspoons oil for 4-6 minutes or until no longer pink; remove and set aside., In the same pan, saute onion in remaining oil until tender. Add garlic and ginger; cook 1 minute longer., Stir in the peas, tomatoes, sweet potato, broth, peanut butter, 1-1/4 teaspoons thyme and cayenne. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes or until potato is tender. Add chicken; heat through., Serve with rice if desired. Sprinkle with remaining thyme.

WEST AFRICAN LEMON MARINATED CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a large baking dish, combine the onion, garlic, chile, salt, ginger, and black pepper. Stir in the lemon juice, 1 c water, and 1 tbsp oil. Coat the chicken pieces in marinade and refrigerate at least 4 hours. Turn pieces every half hour or so.
• Remove chicken from marinade, and reserve the marinade. Pat the pieces dry. In a skillet, heat the remaining 4 tbsp oil over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken, a few pieces a t a time, turning frequently to brown evenly. Pour off all but 2 tbsp oil from the skillet and remove it from heat.
• Using the back of a spoon, press the marinade through a fine sieve set over a bowl. Reheat the oil in the skillet over medium heat. Add the solids fron the sieve and stir constantly until the onion is transparent.
• Return chicken to skillet and add 1/2 c strained marinade and the remaining 1/4 c water. Bring mixture to a boil. Partly cover pand and reduce heat. Simmer 25 minutes, or until chicken is tender.

PERI PERI AFRICAN CHICKEN

Steps:

• In a large bowl, stir together the paprika, chili powder, lemon juice, garlic, ginger and salt. Rub chicken with the mixture, place in a dish, and marinate for 3 hours.
• Preheat a grill for medium heat.
• Place chicken onto the grill and discard the marinade. Cook for about 30 minutes, turning occasionally, until the skin is slightly charred and juices run clear.