Jamaican brown stew chicken is a very popular meal in Jamaica. It is cooked almost every week without fail. It is spiced, filling and super easy.
Brown stew chicken is one of my favorite dishes that my grandmother would make. She would make brown stew chicken every Tuesday with-out-fail. I would anticipate this dish all day long. I mean like I would be in school dreaming about the smell, the glorious spices and the super tender chicken. Most people think of jerk chicken as a staple dish for Jamaicans but this stew is eaten a lot as well. It is the less famous but equally as delicious cousin of the jerk chicken.
The key is to this dish is to “brown” every component of the dish. The brown bits at the bottom of the pan form the gravy. Which incidentally is as important as the chicken or the vegetable. I think you guys know I’m a big fan of any gravy. But this one is AMAZING on rice. I mean like I would save the gravy to have wit a bowl of rice the next day. Is that weird? I hope not because I still do it now.
So äter everything has been “brown” broth is added and it is braised slowly. Which makes two super important things happen: 1). The chicken is tender 2). The vegetables and chicken soak up all those spices and lend to the gravy. Literally ALL roads lead back to the gravy for me. Sorry not sorry!
Do you see what I mean? The carrots, potato and cabbage plump up with the gravy. The chicken is so juicy and flavorful. Which let’s be for real is ALL that matters.
Note: The vegetables can be changed just put together whatever you ave in your fridge. The key to Jamaican cooking is using what is available to you. No need to stress just chillax and grub.
- 4 chicken thigh
- 4 sprig thyme
- 4 garlic clove
- 1 inch grated ginger
- 1 small cabbage cut into wedges
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 6 carrot cut into 1 inch pieces
- 4 russet potato cubed
- 1 large onion
- 5 pimento cloves
- 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 cup broth more if needed
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or 1 de-seeded habanero
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
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prep: Dry brine the chicken: Take the chicken thighs and place in a bowl. Sprinkle on- 1 teaspoon salt, black pepper, garlic powder, paprika, onion powder and cumin. Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight. This step is not necessary but it is HIGLY recommended.
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In a large non stick skillet, eat the oil. Wen the oil is heated, place the chicken skin side down and allow to brown for about 3 minutes. Flip the tight and allow to brown for another 3 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside. Brown the potato, carrots and cabbage.
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Drain off the excess oil. Add butter to pan. Add the onion, ginger and garlic. Cook for about 1 minute. Add ketchup, broth, worcestershire sauce, molasses, brown sugar, pimento cloves and red pepper flakes. Stir all the ingredients and combine.
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Add the chicken, carrot, cabbage and potato in a single layer. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat. Cover the pot and allow to simmer for about 40 Minutes. Uncover for the last 10 minutes and allow the sauce to thicken.
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Chop the cilantro and sprinkle on top of the dish. Serve with rice or by itself.
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Enjoy!
Make it tonight and make my Jamaican grandma happy!!
Is it cilantro or thyme that you use? I tried this an it is awsome
Just made this today and it was awesome ! I didn’t have chicken broth so I used a 1 1/2 cup of water and a Maggie cube to make chicken broth. I also used Goya mojo seasoning to season the chicken in addition to the recommended dry brine spices. Oh yeah! I didn’t have molasses but I did have casreep (like any good Guyanese woman would) and I used a tbs of that instead. Thanks so much for this recipe !
I made this for myself and two roommates and we had leftovers to last about 3 days, and thats not even with us eating rice with it! They all loved it. I think this would make a great potluck dish. For people who like lots of meat, I would say to use large breasts maybe instead of thighs because the veggies are quite abundant. Also, the crushed red pepper goes a long way, so if you are cooking for someone sensitive to spicy, maybe add less and leave some on the side for people to add.
Also, to speak to the volume of food this makes, I had to use a wok to cook all of this. There was just so much! Thanks for this recipe!
Yum! Look at the skin on that chicken – amazing!
Looks like I found an excellent recipe to start my foray into cooking Jamaican food!
This is comfort food at its best, for sure. I can practically taste the depth of flavor through your images!
Yum! This looks absolutely amazing!
Let me tell ya, my mouth is watering looking at your photo’s! This recipe sounds absolutely delicious!
Sounds delicious. I love that there is cabbage in it – I never use it for much so good to get ideas. 🙂
Here are some foods like me 🙂 All the ingredients complement each other perfectly, and a portion of an impressive 🙂
I grew up in Jamaica and this brings back so many childhood memories!!!
I love your recipe, and brown stew is one of my favorites; I am Jamaican.
Thanks for spreading the culture!
I love Jamaican food! Brown stew chicken is one of my favorites! Yummy! Pinning!
Oh my husband would love this! Anything with meat that’s in soup form for some odd reason. Looks amazing, can’t wait to try!
This sounds really yummy! I love the flavors of Jamaican food. I will have to put it on the list of recipes to try!
Wow. That looks amazing!
This looks absolutely delicious and your photos are great!
This looks really delicious!! Pinned for later 🙂
This looks SO yummy! I think this would be a recipe my fiance would love, going to try it out!!
This looks delicious! I’m always looking for unique recipe ideas to jazz up dinner time. Thanks for sharing this!
This looks so great! I love that there’s cabbage in the stew! Pinning and trying later! Thanks for sharing 🙂
xo,
Suz
http://www.suzannespiegoski.com
Sounds great! I wonder if you can make it vegetarian!