Brown Stew Chicken

This classic Jamaican stewed chicken dish is incredibly rich in flavor. All the complementary sweet and spicy notes will make you want to whip this up for a weeknight meal and entertaining. And besides being delicious, it’s an absolute breeze to make!

Course Main

Cuisine Caribbean

Diet Gluten Free

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 35

Marinating Time 1

Total Time 1 50

Servings

Calories 745kcal

Author Imma

Ingredients

Chicken Marinade

1 3½-5 pound (1.5-2.5k) chicken, cut into 10 pieces
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon (2g) chicken bouillon powder
1-2 teaspoons (2-4g) fresh ginger, minced
1 teaspoon (5g) garlic, minced
½ teaspoon (1g) white pepper
1 teaspoon (1g) fresh thyme
½ teaspoon (1g) paprika
2 green onions, diced

Brown Stew Chicken

2 tablespoons (28ml) canola oil, or more as needed
1 medium onion, diced (about 1¼ cups)
2 teaspoons (10g) garlic, minced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 teaspoon (4.7g) hot sauce (or sub chili sauce)
1½ teaspoon (3g) paprika
1 tablespoon (12.5g) brown sugar
1-2 teaspoons (5-10ml) browning sauce
2-3 tablespoons (32-48g) ketchup
2 small bell pepper, sliced (red or green)
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 cups (235-475ml) chicken broth (or water)

Instructions

Pat dry the chicken with paper towels.
Then place chicken in a bowl and season with salt and pepper according to preference.
Then season with the chicken bouillon powder, ginger, garlic, white pepper, thyme, paprika, and green onions. Thoroughly mix the chicken with a spoon or hands until it is well coated, cover tightly, and set aside in the fridge. Marinate for about at least an hour (preferably overnight).
When ready to cook, remove excess marinade from the chicken and reserve for later. Heat up a large pan (mine was a 12-inch cast iron skillet) with about 2 tablespoons oil.
Brown the chicken about 3-4 minutes until chicken is a golden brown, remove and place on a plate. Drain excess oil from the skillet, leaving about 2-3 tablespoons of oil.
In the same pan, add onions, garlic, thyme, hot sauce, paprika, sugar, browning sauce, ketchup, bell peppers (if desired add some or all of the bell peppers towards the last 10 minutes of cooking), and salt to taste. Stir for 2-3 minutes until onions are translucent. Add the reserved chicken marinade.
Deglaze pan with the broth or water. Bring to a boil and return the brown chicken back to the pan.
Cover and cook for about 25 minutes, more or less or until chicken is cooked through (no pink showing) and sauce thickens, slightly. Adjust for salt, pepper, and consistency with more broth or water as you cook.
Turn off the stove, remove the stew, and serve with Caribbean rice and beans.

Notes

You don’t have to brown the chicken and sauté the onions and spices before making the stew, but this small step results in big flavor. I recommend you don’t skip it!
When you deglaze your pan with cool water (or broth), stir frequently. The cool water on the hot pan combined with your stirring will lift any flavorful bits sticking to the pan, prevent them from burning, and make your stew incredibly tasty.
Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on the products used.

Nutrition