Namibian Hard Body Chicken Stew (Marathon Chicken Recipe)
Marathon chicken is a mouthwatering Namibian style hard body chicken stew made with free range hard body chicken and finished off with a good dash of marula oil.
Servings: 8 Servings
Ingredients
- 1 hard body chicken 1.7 kg/ 3.7 lbs
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 teaspoons curry
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 2 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 bell pepper (capsicum) about 150 g ( 5.3 oz)
- 1 large onion
- 2 small tomatoes or 1 medium tomato
- 10 g (0.35 oz) fresh ginger root (about 1 teaspoon minced ginger)
- 500 ml (2 cups) water hot
- 3 tablespoons sunflower oil
Instructions
- Wash the chicken inside out and cut off all visible fat. Next, pat dry the chicken with paper towels and rub it inside and out with roughly 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Then brown it on all sides.
- In the meantime peel and chop onion and garlic. Peel ginger root and grate with a box grater. Then cut paprika and tomatoes into small slices.
- Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside. Sauté onion, garlic and grated ginger in the chicken drippings for about 2 minutes.
- Add bell pepper and tomatoes and let cook for 2 more minutes. Then stir in spices and let cook for 2 minutes.
- Add back the browned chicken sideways and stir in half of the water. Cover and simmer for about 120 minutes. Keep adding the remaining water in between (so that the bottom of the pot doesn’t burn) and turning the chicken after every 30 minutes.
- After 2-hour cooking time remove the lid and cook for 15 more minutes or until the meat is tender and the sauce is nicely thick. If you feel like the meat is not yet tender, then just add more water and let simmer a bit longer.
- Taste the stew and season again with salt and pepper, if necessary and serve. To serve cut the chicken into serving-size pieces and serve.
- Traditionally marathon chicken is served with Pearl Millet Pap (aka. Mahangu pap/ Mahangu stiff porridge) or Mielie pap (maize meal stiff porridge). But it also tastes amazing served with pasta, over rice or with a slice of bread.