Liberian Chicken Gravy
Liberian Chicken Gravy is a tasty stew that will awaken your taste buds and make them fall in love. Loaded with chicken, fish, and shrimp, plus an added layer of bell pepper, this stew is utterly flavorful. 😋
This Liberian stew includes both green and red bell peppers. They’re coarsely ground and simmered until most of the water evaporates. Then, stock intensifies the flavor and adds moisture. It’s delightful!
Chicken, fish, and shrimp come together quite naturally in this recipe. Interestingly, though, the chicken and fish are cooked separately. Then, the ingredients are combined before serving the stew.
Content…Pro Tips for Faster Gravy |
Pro Tips for Making Liberian Chicken Gravy Faster
Cooking each protein separately can be time-consuming. To be honest, I don’t usually go to the trouble of frying the fish at home to include in this stew.
I have two options to shorten the time without sacrificing the fried fish flavor. I buy fish from the fish market and have them do the work by frying it and reducing the cooking time. Or I double the recipe when frying fish for another meal and freeze the leftovers for this recipe.👌
Recipe Ingredients
- Proteins – Fried fish, chicken, and shrimp are the traditional ingredients, but you can customize that list. If you’re in the mood to fry your own fish, try fried catfish nuggets.
- Oil – An African stew staple, you’ll need some cooking oil for this recipe. Canola, corn, or vegetable oil will do the trick.
- Veggies – Red and green bell pepper, onion, garlic, ginger, fresh tomatoes, tomato paste, and a scotch bonnet pepper (or habanero pepper) make the base for this ultra-flavorful gravy.
- Seasonings – Basil and parsley, chicken bouillon, cayenne pepper, and S&P are all you need to complement the veggie flavors.
How to Make Liberian Chicken Gravy
- Cook Meat: Simmer chicken with salt, pepper, paprika, chicken bouillon, and chopped onion in a medium pot until tender. Cooking time varies according to the size and cut of chicken you use. Reserve the stock for later use. (Photo 1)
- Puree tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, garlic, and herbs in a food processor or blender. (Photos 2-3)
- Saute: Add ½ cup oil to a heavy-duty pot, and then add the bell pepper blend, followed by tomato paste. Sauté for 10-15 minutes to blend all the flavors. Stir frequently as the sauce simmers. (Photos 4-5)
- Assemble: Add the chicken and fried fish to the sauce with about 2 cups of stock. Let it simmer for another 10 minutes. (Photo 6)
- Shrimp: Toss in the shrimp (if using) and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
- Serve: Finally, adjust the seasonings to taste with salt and pepper and the consistency with water or chicken stock.
Recipe Variations
- If you want to omit the fish, the chicken and shrimp stand well on their own.
- To make a vegetarian Liberian “chicken” gravy recipe, swap the proteins with tofu, chickpeas, or other plant-based protein. Swap out chicken bouillon and stock for a vegetable variety.
- Add other veggies. This stew is easy to customize. You can add carrots, corn, peas, or other vegetable to this stew; it tastes great!
Tips and Tricks
- Add reserved chicken stock as needed while sauteing the bell pepper sauce to keep it from sticking or burning.
- If you use a scotch bonnet and send it through the blender, be careful when you handle the sauce. You don’t want to get it in your eyes! Trust me on this one. 😂
- Sauteeing the veggie blend in oil blends the flavors, but it also reduces the acidity of the tomato sauce. Feel free to use less oil than I did, but please don’t skip this step.
Make-Ahead Instructions
This stew is a great make-ahead! Make it a day or two ahead and refrigerate in an airtight container for 3-4 days. Or pop it in the freezer for up to three months.
Serving and Storage Instructions
Serve Liberian chicken gravy hot with a side of rice. If you have leftovers, refrigerate them in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Reheat this dish on the stovetop over medium heat or in the microwave.
What Goes With Chicken Liberian Gravy
I love this dish poured over rice! Try it with traditional African rice like spinach rice, East African pilau rice, or basmati rice. Then, wash it all down with a refreshing sorrel drink. 🌺
More Tasty African Soups and Stews to Try
By Imma
Liberian Chicken Gravy
Ingredients
- 2-3 pounds (900-1,400g) chicken, cut up
- salt and pepper to taste
- ½ teaspoon (1g) paprika
- 1 tablespoon (10g) chicken bouillon (optional)
- 2 medium onions, chopped (one for the broth and one for the sauce)
- 2-3 fresh tomatoes (see notes)
- 2-3 large red bell peppers
- 1 green bell pepper
- 5 cloves garlic
- ½ teaspoon (﹤1g) ginger, chopped
- 1 or more scotch bonnet or habanero pepper
- ¼ cup (12-15g) fresh herbs (I used basil and parsley)
- ½ teaspoon (1g) cayenne pepper
- 1-2 tablespoons (14-28g) tomato paste
- 2-3 tablespoons (30-45ml) cooking oil (vegetable, canola, corn)
- 1½-2 pounds (680-900g) fried fish steaks (any firm fish, but I love these catfish nuggets)
- 1 pound (450g) large shrimp, cleaned and deveined
Instructions
- Boil chicken with salt, pepper, paprika, chicken bouillon, and one chopped onion in a medium pot until the chicken is tender. Cooking time varies according to the size of the chicken pieces.
- Reserve the broth for later (the excess is great for freezing).
- In a food processor or blender, puree tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, garlic, ginger, hot pepper, basil, and parsley.
- Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a heavy-duty pot, then add the pureed bell pepper blend and tomato paste.
- Sauté for 10-15 minutes to blend all the flavors and reduce the tomato sauce's acidity. Stir frequently as the sauce simmers, adding reserved chicken broth or water as needed to keep it from burning.
- Next, add the chicken and fried fish sticks with about 2 cups of stock. Simmer for another 10 minutes.
- Toss in shrimp if using, and cook for another 3-5 minutes.
- Adjust seasonings. Then, adjust consistency with reserved broth.
Tips & Notes:
- Tomatoes: Canned tomatoes, fresh tomatoes, or both work fine. Roma tomatoes are preferable because they’re drier for a more flavorful and thicker stew with less acidity
- Onions: Any variety works, coupled with green onions. Chop or puree together with tomatoes.
- Spices: There are a few spices that are often used in stews depending on one’s preference – curry, white pepper, paprika, garlic, bay leaf, and ginger
- Herbs: Basil, parsley, celery, and thyme are the most common
- Vegetables: Any vegetable, like carrots, green beans, and bell peppers
Can’t wait to try this but I have one question. When do the spices get added. I didn’t see them on the ingredient list but in the section after instruction “ curry, white pepper, paprika, garlic, bay leaf and ginger.” Thanks!
You can add it on the last step Mike. 🙂
Wish instructions were a tad clearer, such as wear to find or how to make fried fish, not having paprika in the ingredients list and when to add cayenne, but it turned out absolutely incredible. One of the best dishes my family has ever tasted. Thank you for the authentic recipe!
Thank you so much, Darrow! 🙂
Can this be made with just the chicken?
Yes, it sure can.
I have a friend who is from Liberia and he is feeling a little homesick right now. I would love to be able to cook him a traditional Liberian meal. Do you have any recommendations and recipes?
Awww.. That’s so sweet of you, Jennifer. You can check out more Liberian meals here >>> https://www.africanbites.com/?s=liberia
Jennifer McClelland I am assuming you already made the dish, so this info is good for if you wish to make a second set of dishes for your friend.
1. Pepper Soup is pretty much a staple. It is also one of the easiest to make. This is a good starting place.
2. Consider asking your friend where they are from in Liberia. Different counties have different “specialties.” An easy example that I heard all the time was people from Lofa County made a lot of Torbaghee (not sure on the spelling).
3. If you want to make your friend feel like it is a special occasion, Jollof Rice or the above Chicken Gravy are good places to start.
Be aware that everyone cooks all of these dishes a little differently, so if you try to cook something exotic your friend may not recognize the dish simply because your method of prep is different than they were taught. That is why I put Pepper Soup as number 1.
Thanks for taking the time to share this with us .
It’s 1-2 Tablespoon tomato paste .