Roadrunner chicken

Ingredients

The bird

• 1free-range village hen
• about 2 kg, jointed
• or a mature boiling fowl
• salt and black pepper

The pot

• 3onions, sliced
• 6garlic cloves, crushed
• 400 gtomatoes, chopped
• 2 tablespoonstomato paste
• 3 tablespoonsoil
• 2 teaspoonscurry powder
• or to taste
• 2bay leaves
• about 1 litre water

Sometimes added

• 1green pepper, chopped
• 1hot chilli
• 2carrots, in chunks
• a stock cube

To serve

• sadza
• or rice
• greens alongside

Directions

1. Check it rather than guessing at it. Wash hands after handling raw chicken. Wash boards and knives as well. Do not let raw juices touch other food. Cut the chicken into serving pieces.
2. Cut through the joints rather than bone. Take the wings off at the shoulder. Cut the breast into two or four. Keep the back for the pot as well. Season the pieces with salt and pepper. Season it well ahead if you can. An hour gives noticeably better flavour.
3. Heat the oil in a heavy deep pot. Brown all the chicken in batches. Do not crowd the pot at any point. Brown every side of every piece. Aim for a genuinely deep golden brown. Take the time to do it properly. Add the sliced onion to the pot. Cook it for about twelve minutes. It should soften and turn golden.
4. Add the crushed garlic to the pot. Give it about one full minute. Stir the curry powder into the pot. Heat releases their aromatic oils. Give it about thirty seconds only. Stir it constantly so it does not burn. Add the tomato paste and cook it out. Frying it for two minutes removes that. Return the chicken to the pot. Add water to nearly cover the meat. It should nearly cover the meat.
5. Add more water later if it dries. A thick sauce is what is wanted. Add the bay leaves to the pot. Add the carrot and chilli if using. Bring the pot up to a bare simmer. Cover the pot and leave it alone. Keep it at the barest simmer only. It should barely bubble at the surface.
6. Let it simmer for at least two hours. A village bird needs genuinely long cooking. Check it every forty minutes or so. Make sure it is not catching on the base. Add water if it is drying out.
7. Stir it gently rather than vigorously. Judging it takes a proper test. Pull at the meat with a large fork. It should come away from the bone easily. Take the lid off for the last half hour. Watch it so that it does not catch. Stir it more often once uncovered. Taste it and then adjust the salt. Season the stew right at the end.
8. Add plenty of black pepper to it. Judging it takes a careful look. Cook it down further if it is thin. Add more water if it is too thick. Serving it is always done hot. Serve it with sadza or with rice. Serve green vegetables alongside. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• A village bird needs at least two hours of gentle simmering and often three: it lives longer and moves constantly, which develops the muscle, and developed muscle carries far more flavour but is much tougher. Long gentle heat breaks the collagen down into gelatine, which tenderises the meat and gives the sauce real body — roasting such a bird fast makes it inedible.
• Keep it at the barest simmer, barely bubbling, since a hard boil toughens the meat fibres. Judge it by pulling at the meat with a fork: it should come away from the bone with no resistance at all, and if it clings it needs another half hour. There is genuinely no shortcut, and different birds vary enormously.
• Chicken must be cooked right through, though this cooks well past that anyway. Wash hands, boards and knives after handling it raw — but do not rinse the raw bird in the sink, which splashes bacteria around the kitchen without making it any safer.

Substitutions

• A mature boiling fowl — a laying hen sold specifically for slow cooking, which butchers can often order in — is the nearest substitute and behaves much like a village bird. A supermarket chicken cooks in a fraction of the time and tastes far less of anything.
• Green pepper, hot chilli, carrot and a stock cube are all common additions; carrot adds sweetness and slightly thickens the sauce.

Variations

• Curry powder is genuinely standard here, having arrived through Indian influence in the region, and is not an inauthentic addition; fry it about thirty seconds so the heat opens up the spices, stirring constantly so it does not burn.
• Cut through the joints rather than bone, feeling for the gap where the knife passes easily — forcing a knife through bone is dangerous. Keep the back for the pot, since it carries little meat but a great deal of flavour, and fish it out before serving.
• Take the lid off for the last half hour so the sauce reduces and concentrates, stirring more often once uncovered so it does not catch, and season only at the end since long cooking concentrates the salt.

History

Free-range village birds nicknamed for their speed; tough, slow-cooked and considered far better eating than commercial broilers.

Frequently asked questions

What is Roadrunner chicken?

Roadrunner chicken is a main from Zimbabwe: free-range village hen stewed slowly, prized weekend treat. Free-range village birds nicknamed for their speed; tough, slow-cooked and considered far better eating than commercial broilers.

How long does Roadrunner chicken take to make?

Roadrunner chicken takes 30 minutes of preparation and 2 hours 30 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Roadrunner chicken?

Yes, within limits. A mature boiling fowl — a laying hen sold specifically for slow cooking, which butchers can often order in — is the nearest substitute and behaves much like a village bird. A supermarket chicken cooks in a fraction of the time and tastes far less of anything. Green pepper, hot chilli, carrot and a stock cube are all common additions; carrot adds sweetness and slightly thickens the sauce.

What is the most important thing to get right in Roadrunner chicken?

Check it rather than guessing at it. Wash hands after handling raw chicken. Wash boards and knives as well. Do not let raw juices touch other food. Cut the chicken into serving pieces.