🇬🇩 Grenadian Cuisine

Pelau

One-Pot Rice with Chicken and Pigeon Peas

Prep Time 1 hour 15 min
Servings 6
Difficulty Medium
Calories 514 kcal

A beloved one-pot dish of caramelised chicken cooked with rice, pigeon peas, coconut milk, and warming spices, yielding a smoky, slightly sweet meal.

Ingredients

  • 1kg chicken pieces
  • 2 cups long-grain rice
  • 1 can pigeon peas, drained
  • 400ml coconut milk
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 sprigs thyme
  • 1 Scotch bonnet pepper, whole
  • 2 tbsp ketchup
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 cups water
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 1 carrot, diced

Instructions

  1. 1 Season chicken with garlic, thyme, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Marinate thirty minutes.
  2. 2 Heat oil in a heavy pot. Add brown sugar and let it caramelise until dark. Add chicken and brown well on all sides.
  3. 3 Add onion, carrot, and ketchup. Cook five minutes until vegetables soften.
  4. 4 Add rice, pigeon peas, coconut milk, water, and whole Scotch bonnet. Stir once and bring to a boil.
  5. 5 Reduce heat to very low, cover tightly, and cook twenty-five minutes without lifting the lid.
  6. 6 Fluff with a fork, remove Scotch bonnet, and serve. The bottom crust called bun-bun is the prized part.

Did You Know?

The crispy rice crust at the bottom of the pot, called bun-bun, is considered the best part and is fought over at every Grenadian gathering.

From The Culinary Codex — http://theculinarycodex.com/dish/grenadian/pelau/