Belizean stew chicken
I'd never heard of this until I bought a bottle of recado paste on a whim and wanted to know what to do with it. Where has this been all my life? Not the fanciest dish in the world by any stretch, but a filling and satisfying crowd-pleaser that doesn't take much active prep time.
Ingredients
- 8 to 10 pieces bone-in, skin-on chicken, drums and thighs (about 4 pounds)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 medium onions, halved and sliced into strips
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp distilled vinegar
- 2 tbsp red recado, e.g. Marie Sharp's Belizean Season-All
- 1 tbsp raw sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp MSG
- 3 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, recado, sugar, cumin, oregano and black pepper to make marinade. Place chicken pieces in a large zipper bag and add marinade; toss to coat. Let marinate from 30 minutes to overnight.
Add 1 tbsp vegetable oil to Instant Pot and set to sauté. When oil is hot, add chicken pieces in 2 batches, searing both sides to partially render fat from the skin, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove seared chicken to a plate. Deglaze Instant Pot with a small amount of stock as needed to prevent burning.
When the last piece of chicken is removed, add onions and toss to sauté (there should be plenty of oil and fat remaining in the pot). Cook for 3-4 minutes, add garlic, and cook another 2-3 minutes until translucent. Turn off pot.
Return seared chicken pieces to the pot with onions and garlic. Add 1 1/2 cups chicken stock to marinating bag and mix with leftover marinade, then add to Instant Pot. Add onion powder, garlic powder, salt and MSG. Cook on manual mode, high pressure, for 20 minutes, and open pressure valve for a quick release when cooking time is over. The chicken should be very tender and nearly falling off the bone.
Serve over rice, or with rice, black beans and potato salad.
