Kedjenou

Ingredients

• 1.4kg chicken thighs and drumsticks, bone in, skin on
• 500g ripe tomatoes, quartered
• 2 onions, thickly sliced
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
• 1 aubergine or 6 African garden eggs, cut into chunks
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 30g fresh ginger, finely grated
• 1 whole scotch bonnet chilli
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 stock cube, crumbled
• 3 tbsp groundnut oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• Attieke or steamed rice, to serve

Before you cook

• Cut the chicken into serving pieces and pat them dry.
• Quarter the tomatoes, slice the onions thickly and cut the pepper and aubergine into large chunks.
• Grate the ginger and slice the garlic.
• Find a heavy casserole with a genuinely tight lid, and tear off a sheet of foil to seal it if the lid is loose.

Steps

1. Put the chicken into the casserole and add the tomatoes, onions, bell pepper, aubergine, garlic, ginger, bay leaves, thyme, crumbled stock cube, oil, salt and pepper.
2. Toss everything together with your hands until the chicken is coated.
3. Lay the whole scotch bonnet on top without piercing it, so it perfumes the pot without releasing all its heat.
4. Seal the pot with foil if the lid is not tight, then press the lid down firmly.
5. Set the pot over low heat and cook for 20 minutes without opening it. The vegetables will release enough liquid to steam the chicken.
6. Take hold of the pot with both hands and shake it firmly from side to side to move the contents around, rather than lifting the lid to stir.
7. Return the pot to the heat and cook for another 20 minutes, then shake it again.
8. Cook for a final 20 minutes, so the chicken has had an hour in the sealed pot.
9. Lift the lid and check that the chicken pulls easily from the bone and that the tomatoes have collapsed into a loose sauce.
10. Remove the scotch bonnet and the bay leaves.
11. Raise the heat to medium and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes to reduce the sauce until it coats the chicken.
12. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
13. Serve straight from the pot over attieke or rice, with the cooked chilli on the side for anyone who wants to crush it into their portion.