This is curry chicken. More specifically, Trinidadian chicken curry. Even more specifically, my husband Tom’s Trinidadian chicken curry. Last week’s version, to be exact.
There are as many different versions of curry in Trinidad as there are individual cooks in those islands. I’m serious. Each one has his or her own method, and some guard their secrets so closely that they’ll season their meat the night before, far from prying eyes, and then feign a hearing impediment the next day, when asked for their recipe.
During the early years of our marriage, Tom was definitely not as forthcoming with his curry secrets. He’d stand over his pot, stirring (or, as they say in Trinidad, “turning the pot”), and he’d sneak glances to check where I was before throwing some extra spice in. If I came anywhere near the stove, he’d position himself right between the pot and my line of sight. I’m telling you: for Trinidadians, curry is serious business.
Then, I started this blog. And I invited him to write, not just about his travels (I still have a few more installments to post for his most recent trip), but also about cooking. And just like that, all it took was a well-timed, “honey, I bet people would really enjoy learning how to make Trinidadian-style curry,” and off he was to his laptop to type out a recipe for me.
Who knew blogging had that kind of power?
(Of course, little did he know that when I said “people,” I meant the six or seven people who read my blog. Hi, Ma!)
As varied as Trinidadian curry versions are, a few things remain constant:
- Always wash the meat very well. Tom always washes the meat in lime juice or vinegar.
- Season the meat well and let it sit in the seasonings long enough to flavor the meat. Use any combination of herbs and seasonings you want. The base that we use always includes cilantro (preferably culantro if we have it), scallions, garlic, and some fresh scotch bonnet pepper (or any other hot pepper). Salt the meat liberally.
- Cook the curry into a paste before throwing the meat in. Trinidadian curry is a mix of ground raw spices, so it needs to be cooked.
Yes, we use that much seasoning for the meat. Believe me, it makes the finished dish so flavorful. And we add turmeric (the yellow powder above) to Trinidadian curry, both for its subtle flavor and for color. The curry that Tom buys there is a strong blend that doesn’t contain much turmeric.
This is what the curry slurry looks like. It’s just the curry mix with some water. This is what we’ll be cooking down to a paste. The cooking of the curry is, for me, the trickiest part of the dish, so I assembled this little collage so you’ll know what to expect if you do try to make this. Only when the curry has cooked down to a thick, gritty paste do you throw in the seasoned meat.
Stir the meat around. You’ll notice some liquid in there, and you want to cook that down. Once the pot is almost dry again, add enough water to help create a sauce, and continue simmering the chicken.
And that’s pretty much it! The hardest part is over, and now you just cook the chicken until it’s done. Adjusting is easy, too. If the curry is too salty, add sliced tomatoes. If it’s too bland, just continue reducing the sauce. Too overpowering? You can try adding coconut milk to round it out, and end up with a different version that’s still really, really good.
I have to say that I was never a big fan of curry, but Tom’s cooking has converted me.
And now, before my husband changes his mind and decides to become secretive again about his recipe, here it is in all its glory.
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Curry Chicken alla Tom
1 chicken, about 3-4 pounds cut up into small pieces (or just chicken legs, chicken thighs, or even chicken breast)
2 rounded tablespoons Trinidadian curry powder
2 teaspoons turmeric powder
6-8 sprigs of cilantro
8 cloves garlic
2-3 scallions, or you can use half of an onion
1 tomato
½ scotch bonnet pepper, or you can substitute 1 jalapeno pepper or ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper (adjust to taste)
1 teaspoon yellow mustard (use any type)
2 teaspoons salt (adjust to taste, but make sure the chicken is seasoned well)
½ medium onion
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 whole lime, used to wash the chicken
Cut chicken into small pieces (if you don’t mind larger pieces, you could leave a leg or a thigh as one piece). The size is really not critical—it is just a matter of how your family prefers to eat chicken.
Remove all skin and fat, wash under running water. Squeeze a fresh lime onto the chicken and stir it around for a while in a bowl, allowing the lime to cover all the chicken parts. Then let it sit for about 3 minutes before rinsing thoroughly. Drain all the water out. Pat the chicken dry.
In a small chopper, place cilantro, garlic, scallions (or half an onion), pepper (adjust according to your tolerance for heat), and tomato. Chop thoroughly. Add these to the chicken along with the mustard, salt and black pepper. Mix thoroughly and allow the chicken to marinate in the seasonings for at least 2 hours.
After the chicken has marinated, mix curry powder and turmeric in a small bowl with 3/4 cup water until completely dissolved.
In a skillet large enough to contain all the chicken without crowding, heat oil. Pour the curry slurry into the oil. This is not the time to attend to anything else. You want to keep stirring the curry slurry and allowing it to cook without burning for about 4-5 minutes on medium low heat. Keep scraping the bottom so nothing sticks. If the curry mixture burns, it will taste bitter. If the curry mixture seems to be getting too dry, add tablespoonfuls of water as needed.
Eventually you would see the oil bubbling through the curry mixture, and the curry will have become a thick paste. This is time to add the rest of the onions (sliced). Allow the onions to soften, then add the chicken. Turn the heat up a bit, and stir the chicken around to coat all the pieces with the curry mixture.
Cook half-covered for about 5 minutes, then stir everything in the pot, checking for burning. We need to allow the initial moisture to burn off. If the chicken seems to be burning, turn down the heat and add 2 cups of water, mix together and allow to cook. Once the mixture is bubbling, turn heat down a bit, cover and cook for another 10 minutes, checking and stirring regularly every 3-5 minutes. After that time, check again. Taste for salt and pepper, adjust to taste.
Allow chicken to finish cooking. Add water, if necessary, to create a little sauce. The amount of sauce should come up to about a third of the height of the chicken.
Serve over jasmine rice. To eat it the traditional Trini way, grab pieces of chicken with your fingers and enjoy.
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