Zimbabwe: Roadrunner Chicken, Sautéed Covo Kale Greens and Peanut Butter Rice

 

 

Famed for the grandeur of its landscape, the Republic of Zimbabwe is a landlocked country in south east Africa. Zimbabwe sweeps across lush forested mountains to quintessential  African savannahsdotted with ancient baobab trees where the ‘big five’ (leopard, lion, elephant, rhino and buffalo) roam, to end at one of the seven natural wonders of the World: the breathtaking Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya (‘the smoke that thunders’). Victoria Falls and its mother the mighty Zambezi River form a watery border between Zimbabwe and its northern neighbour Zambia. The other countries landlocking Zimbabwe are  Botswana (to the west and south west), South Africa (to the south),  and Mozambique (to the east and north east). 

 

Zimbabwean cuisine is relatively mild in flavour compared to the food cultures of neighbouring countries who share  a love for hot chili peppers. In contrast, Zimbabwean food is  subtle, favouring the use of fresh herbs and fragrant spices. This is a food culture that balances a surprisingly diverse variety of traditional ingredients (from worms to wild game), and fresh sub-tropical vegetables with European cookery styles inherited from British colonisation.

 

 

Our

Zimbabwean Menu

 included

 

Roadrunner Chicken

Sautéed Covo Kale Greens

and

Peanut Butter Rice 

 

 

ROADRUNNER CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS:

·      1 free range chicken cut in portions or 1.2 kg chicken portions

·      2 tbs olive oil

·      1 medium onion, peeled and diced

·      2-3 tomatoes diced, or 1 tin diced tomato

·      2 garlic cloves, crushed

·      1 green bell pepper/capsicum, deseeded and diced

·      3 cups chicken stock

·      1 ½ tsp salt

·      2 bay leaves

·      3 tsp tsp mixed dry herbs (equal parts thyme, oregano, parsley and basil

·      1 tsp smoked paprika (to emulate the flavours of cooking over open fire)

·      ¼ tsp ginger, chopped

 

METHOD:

1.    If using a whole chicken wash and dry it with kitchen paper before cutting

2.    Put chicken, salt, bay leaves and stock in a medium large pot

3.    Bring the pot to the boil on the stove then turn back to a simmer and cover with a lid

4.    Simmer the pot for 10 minutes then remove the lid and stir

5.    Simmer for another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until there is almost no stock left in the pot

6.    Remove the chicken from the pot with a slotted spoon and put aside to air dry a bit

7.    Pour the stock off into another container and reserve for later

8.    Now heat the oil in the pan and fry the chicken pieces until golden brown on all sides then remove from the oil and put aside again

9.    Add the onion, garlic and ginger to the hot oil and fry on medium to low heat with lid on for about 5 mins

10.         Add bell peppers, tomato, herbs and spices and cook for about 20 mins to form a sauce

11.         Now add back in the stock and chicken and simmer with lid off stirring occasionally until the chicken is warmed through, all the flavours have blended and sauce is thick.

12.         Now it’s ready to serve

 

This is a Q-ZINE original recipe informed by several found at:

 https://www.exoticca.com/us/africa/south-africa/zimbabwe/gastronomy

https://www.zimbokitchen.com/traditional-zimbabwean-chicken-stew/

https://www.princesstafadzwa.com/traditional-zimbabwean-chicken-stew/

https://cookpad.com/us/recipes/423738-zimbabwe-traditional-road-runner-stew

https://afropeans.com/kitchen/road-runner-chicken-in-peanut-butter-sauce-zimbabwe-recipe/

https://www.zimbokitchen.com/traditional-roadrunner-chicken-in-peanut-butter-sauce/

 

 

PEANUT BUTTER RICE

INGREDEINTS:

·      2 cups long grain rice

·      4 cups water

·      1 tsp salt

·      I tbs butter

·      3 tbs peanut butter

NOTE: if available it is good to use either smoked salt or smoked peanut butter to emulate the flavours of the traditional method of cooking over an open fire

 

METHOD:

1.    Put rice, water, salt and butter into a medium pot and bring to the boil, stirring often with a wooden spoon to stop the rice sticking to the bottom of the pot

2.    When the rice boils give it a really good stir, put a tight fitting lid on the pot and turn the heat back to very low and simmer for 10 mins

3.    Leave the lid on and turn the heat off to let the rice steam on the cooling element for 10 mins

4.    Remove the lid, fluff the rice with a fork and fold in the peanut butter

5.    put the lid back on and let the rice sit for a further 10 mins to marry the flavours

 

This is a Q-ZINE original recipe informed by several found at:

https://taffycooks.com/rice-with-peanut-butter-and-chicken-recipe-rice-rine-dovi/

https://www.zimbokitchen.com/traditional-rice-rinedovi/

https://ndani.tv/ndanils/racquel-mafura/

 

SAUTÉED COVO KALE GREENS

INGREDIENTS:

·      2 bunches Covo/kale/collard greens

·      2 garlic cloves, crushed

·      2 tbs olive/vegetable oil

·      salt and ground black pepper to taste

·      1/2 cup chicken stock

·      2 pinches black mustard seed, ground

NOTE: If you can’t get access to Covo/kale you can use 400 gm of chopped swiss chard leaf/English spinach/baby spinach

 

METHOD:

1.    De-stem the greens and cut them into thin ribbons (you don’t need to de-stem if using tender or young greens such as baby spinach)

2.    Heat oil in a large pan/pot

3.    On a very low heat add the garlic to the oil and gently heat it without browning for about 1 min then turn the heat off and let the pan sit for 10 mins to allow the oil to be infused with the garlic flavour

4.    Now heat the oil to medium add the greens, season with salt and pepper and sauté until the greens are wilted

5.    Add the chicken stock and simmer for about 20 mins, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until the greens are cooked and the stock has almost completely reduced and has formed a sauce

6.    Add the ground mustard and if needed  more salt/pepper to taste

7.    The dish is now ready to serve

 

This is a Q-ZINE original recipe informed by several found at:

https://www.princesstafadzwa.com/sauteed-mustard-greens/

https://www.zimbokitchen.com/how-to-prepare-muriwo-werape-and-having-it-crisp/

 https://therainqueen.com/growing-covo-a-zimbabwean-heirloom-kale/

https://thestonesoup.com/blog/collard-greens-substitutes/

 

 

Note: Photo used under Fair Use Laws from: https://atasteozimboivyskitchenette.com/2015/06/21/zimbabwean-chicken-stew-2/

To find out more about  Zimbabwean food, click this link  to see the recipe attached to the photo and  many others that Ivy has shared on her Zimbabwean food blog since 2015. .