Cuba – Coconut Chicken with Yellow Rice & Radish Salad

 

Sitting at the intersection between the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea,  Cuba is both an Island and a country. The Republic of Cuba includes the main island, Cuba (which is the largest Island in the Caribbean), and several small island chains.  Cuba  has a unique & robust fusion cuisine  which combines Caribbean  flavours  & Spanish cooking methods. This dinner was truly lovely with all the flavours blending perfectly to make a simple yet memorable meal that even an inexperienced cook could master. The food looked beautiful on the table & was amazing in the mouth.

I hope you try these recipes as I think they are all worth the effort & If you do try any of these dishes please Spare a thought for the Cuban cooks. Those of us who live with an abundance of fresh food at our doorsteps should be thankful every day for this gift & also be mindful that others are not so blessed. The Cubans have lived with  four decades of Food rationing! In recent years things have become even worse for Cuban cooks; ongoing economic embargos, political re-alignment, local & global financial crisis, fuel shortages, & destruction of essential food  crops by hurricanes & pests have left the Cuban’s cupboards quite bare. In a perfect World there would be food for all…I hope we see this one day.

Our Cuban menu included:

Coconut Chicken 
with 
Yellow Rice 
& 
Radish Salad

COCONUT CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS:

·      8 chicken thighs

·      1 teaspoon vegetable oil

·      1 onion - chopped

·      1 red bell pepper - chopped

·      1 green bell pepper, chopped

·      8 cloves garlic  - chopped & roasted

·      1 x 400 ml can coconut milk

·      salt and pepper to taste

·      1 tsp crushed chilli flakes

METHOD:

1.     Preheat oven to 220 degrees C (425 degrees F).

2.     Heat oil & tsp salt  in a large oven proof pan on top of stove

3.     Place chicken skin side down in the hot vegetable oil & fry until it begins to brown, gently lifting it up from the pan with a metal spatula occasionally to stop the skin from sticking to the pan

4.     When the chicken skin is brown turn chicken pieces  over  & brown other side (turn a few times if you need to get it browned evenly on all sides). 

5.     Remove chicken from pan & sit it aside on a plate

6.     Add onions to the pan of oil & chicken fat & saute until they are translucent & beginning to brown

7.     Add in the green bell peppers and continue sautéing until beginning to brown

8.     Add in the garlic, & cook a little

9.     Add the coconut milk, pepper & chilli to the vegetables & bring to the boil to begin forming a sauce

10.  Return the chicken to the pan skin side up making sure it is evenly surrounded by sauce & spoon some of the sauce over the top

11.  Let the mixture cook 5 to 8 minutes  on a slow bubble

12.  Transfer the pan to the oven and bake uncovered at 220 degrees C (425 degrees F)  for 45 minutes, or until the chicken is tender & the other ingredients have formed a thick sauce.

Recipe adapted from an original found at: http://www.tasteofcuba.com/coconutchicken.html

NOTE: the original recipe used chicken breast but I looked at dozens of Cuban chicken recipes before I chose this one and all the others used chicken cuts on the bone so to remain authentic I chose to use chicken thighs.

 
YELLOW RICE

INGREDIENTS:

·      4 cups of long grain rice

·      8 cups of water

·      one small onion - diced finely

·      2 teaspoons of salt

·      1/8 teaspoon of paprika

·      1/8 teaspoon of powdered annatto (replace with equal parts nutmeg & tumeric)

·      one cup of peas

METHOD:

1.     Put the rice in a sieve and then rinse it with cold water till it is clean and clear.

2.      Drain it thoroughly to remove all the water from the rice.

3.     Fry the onion in vegetable oil in a large pot with a tight fitting lid

4.     Add rice & fry a little with the spices & salt

5.      Add water and bring to the boil stirring often

6.     When the mix comes to the boil add the peas & stir well

7.     Cover the pot with a lid & reduce heat to lowest point then cook covered for 10 mins

8.     After ten minutes turn off heat. Do not remove lid. Let pot sit on cooling element for a further ten minutes.

9.     Then just let it sit with the lid on until ready to serve

Recipe adapted from:

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/articles/cuba/Cuban-Yellow-Rice/3097

CUBAN SALAD (ENSALADA CUBANA)

INGREDIENTS:

• 1/2 head lettuce

• 2 ripe red tomatoes
• 6 radishes, sliced thin

• 1 avocado
• 1 red onion
• 2 tsp. olive oil
• lime juice
• salt to taste

METHOD:

1.     Break up the lettuce by hand & arrange on a serving platter

2.     Cut the tomatoes in wedges & add to salad

3.     cut the onion in thin slices & add

4.     Thin slice the radishes & add

5.     and then top with small slices of avocado

6.     sprinkle with olive oil, salt, and a squeeze of lime juice.

Recipe adapted from those found at:

http://www.tasteofcuba.com/cubansalad.html

http://icuban.com/food/ensalada_tipica.html

http://latinfood.about.com/od/saladsdressings/r/toss_salad.htm