Trinidadian Chicken Roti to Spice Up Your Table
Recently, after a week of gorging ourselves on foods like an amazingly rich parmesan orzo and The Beard’s turkey burgers, we decided to lighten things up a bit and did an entire weekend of chicken, one of which was an immensely flavorful Trinidadian chicken roti that certainly spiced up the night for us.
Saying this has flavor would be an understatement. I don’t think we’ve ever had as many spices on the counter at once as we did while preparing this recipe. “Flavor” is putting it mildly, and there is nothing mild about this. However, while this Trini chicken is spicy, it’s not overly hot, if that makes sense. It’s bold, without being one of those foods that’s nothing but heat for heat’s sake. We’re not talking about something with a flavor profile better described as “Satan’s Apocalyptic Kiss”, we’re talking about the slow-burning, mellow heat of a Barry White song.
Aw yeah.
Let’s get it on.
I wouldn’t really call this a marinade so much as a spice rub. A whole mess of spices get together and mingle to coat every square inch of the succulent chicken breasts. You’ll want to get your hands in there and lavish that chicken with all the attention you can give it, leaving no spot untouched. It’s a veritable orgy of spices.
Next, you put all that spice-covered chicken into a covered bowl or a ziplock bag and let it bask in the afterglow of your fridge for a few hours. When you’re ready to get things really cooking, you sauté the chicken with the spices, then add in some onion.
Now, this is where things really begin to heat up. Since everything that’s currently sizzling in the pan is reaching its peak, we’re going to add the potatoes, chickpeas, and the broth to the pan, because the more, the merrier, right? Bring it all up to a boil, then turn down the heat and let it simmer for 20 minutes. The chickpeas and potatoes will release their starches and thicken everything up. Ladle yourself a bowl of this goodness, bring on some flatbread (we used the leftover pita from the chicken gyros), and the only thing left to do is open wide.
Trinidadian Chicken
The flavor-packed rub is what makes this chicken dish spicy without being hot. Factor in some chickpeas and potatoes, all swimming in a boldly seasoned broth, and this is the perfect food to help bring a little heat to your table.
Ingredients
Chicken Prep
- 2 lbs chicken breast cubed
- ½ tsp white pepper
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- ½ tsp dried thyme
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp curry powder
- ½ tsp chicken bouillon powder see recipe notes
Trinidadian Chicken Roti
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsps curry powder
- ½ white onion chopped or pureed
- 1 tsp allspice
- 1 ½ tsps smoked paprika
- 1 ½ tsps dried thyme
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp white pepper
- 1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 2 russet potatoes cut into 1" cubes
- 1 tbsp chicken bouillon powder see recipe notes
- 4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp chili powder
Instructions
Chicken Prep
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Add all the spices to a medium-sized bowl and mix well. Add chicken and minced garlic and mix everything together to evenly coat the chicken with the spices and garlic. Cover or transfer to a plastic bag and allow it to chill in the fridge for 3-4 hours.
Trinidadian Chicken Roti
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Heat oil in large saucepan. Add chicken, onion, and spices, and saute everything over medium-high heat until the chicken has browned. You can add a bit of stock to the pan if things start to burn, but you should be fine.
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Add the broth, chickpeas, and potatoes to the pan. Bring everything to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20-25 minutes, until it thickens.
Recipe Notes
If you are using the type of bouillon that comes in little rectangular cubes, crumble up one of them into a small container or baggy, then measure out the amount you need for the spice rub, then use the remainder for the stew prep.
Recipe modified from one found at African Bites.
The Tart likes to eat, cook, and bake things. She eats to work out, and she works out to be able to eat.
