Chicken stew

Name: Chicken stew
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Namibie
Ingredients: 800 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 5 cm pieces; 400 g canned chopped tomatoes, with their juice, without added salt; 200 g onions, peeled weight, thinly sliced; 250 g carrots, peeled weight, cut into 1 cm rounds; 300 g white cabbage, core removed, cut into 2 cm strips; 12 g garlic, peeled and chopped; 30 ml sunflower oil; 400 ml hot water; 20 g tomato paste without added salt; 2 g sweet paprika; 1 g dried thyme; 1 bay leaf; 4 g salt; 1 g ground black pepper; 15 ml lemon juice

🍲 A family-style stew of chicken, tomato, onion, carrot and cabbage, with a mild, generous sauce.

Ingredients

800 g boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 5 cm pieces
400 g canned chopped tomatoes, with their juice, without added salt
200 g onions, peeled weight, thinly sliced
250 g carrots, peeled weight, cut into 1 cm rounds
300 g white cabbage, core removed, cut into 2 cm strips
12 g garlic, peeled and chopped
30 ml sunflower oil
400 ml hot water
20 g tomato paste without added salt
2 g sweet paprika
1 g dried thyme
1 bay leaf
4 g salt
1 g ground black pepper
15 ml lemon juice

Preparation

During the 20 min preparation period, weigh all the ingredients, wash the vegetables and cut them to the stated sizes. Prepare the vegetables before the chicken, then change cutting boards. Do not wash raw chicken: splashes can spread germs. Pat it dry with disposable paper, discard the paper, then wash your hands and clean the surfaces.

Heat the oil in a wide casserole over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken in 2 batches for 5 min each, giving 10 min in total. Turn the pieces to colour several sides without trying to cook them through. Set them aside on a plate reserved for meat that is still partly raw.

Lower the heat to medium. Add the onions and cook for 8 min, stirring and loosening the browned juices. If the bottom catches, use a small part of the measured 400 ml water instead of adding oil. The onions should become soft and lightly golden, never black.

Add the garlic, tomato paste, paprika and thyme. Stir for 2 min over medium-low heat to flavour the oil and mellow the raw taste of the paste. Watch the garlic and paprika especially closely, as they turn bitter when burned.

Add the tomatoes and their juice, carrots, bay leaf, salt, pepper and the remainder of the 400 ml water. Return the chicken and its plate juices to the casserole. Raise the heat and allow 5 min to reach a steady simmer; the liquid should move gently rather than boil fiercely.

Cover and simmer for 20 min over low heat. Carefully turn the pieces halfway through and check that the sauce is not sticking. Keep the lid properly in place to limit evaporation; the carrots should begin to soften and the chicken should remain partly submerged.

Add the cabbage, stir to coat it with sauce, then continue cooking uncovered for 10 min, still at a gentle simmer. Stir carefully to keep the chicken pieces intact. The cabbage should be tender but recognisable, and the sauce thick enough to coat a spoon.

At the end of these 55 min of cooking, use a thermometer to check for at least 74 °C at the centre of several of the largest chicken pieces, without touching the casserole. Colour alone does not guarantee safety. If needed, continue cooking and check again; any extension increases the stated total time.

Remove the bay leaf and stir in the 15 ml lemon juice off the heat. Taste the sauce only after safe cooking has been confirmed. Serve immediately with a clean ladle and plate, never those that held the partly raw chicken. Divide the meat, vegetables and sauce evenly.