Igisafuliya

Ingredients

Chicken

• 1whole chicken, jointed
• or 1.5 kg chicken pieces
• 2 teaspoonssalt
• black pepper

The pot

• 4green plantains, in thick pieces
• 3onions, sliced
• 6garlic cloves, crushed
• 4celery stalks, chopped
• with their leaves
• 3carrots, in chunks
• 3tomatoes, chopped
• 2 tablespoonstomato paste
• 1sweet pepper, chopped
• 3 tablespoonsoil
• 1stock cube
• about 400 ml water

Sometimes added

• 2potatoes, in chunks
• a handful of greens
• 1chilli, whole

To serve

• rice, optional
• cooked greens
• chilli sauce

Directions

1. Cut the ends off with a knife first. Score the skin lengthways in three places. Cut through the skin but not the flesh. Rub your hands with oil first if you can.
2. Joint the chicken into serving pieces. Rinse them and pat them fully dry. Season them with salt and black pepper. Never throw the celery leaves away here. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot. Add the chicken pieces skin side down. Brown them for about four minutes a side. Do not crowd the pot at any point.
3. Lift them out and set them aside. Building the base takes a few minutes. Add the sliced onions to the pot. Cook them for a good eight minutes. Add the crushed garlic to them. Cook it for a good two minutes. Stir the tomato paste in as well. Fry it for a good two minutes.
4. Return the chicken pieces to the pot. Lay the plantain pieces around them. Add the carrots and the sweet pepper. Add the chopped celery and its leaves. Add the chopped tomatoes over everything. Crumble in the stock cube as well. Add the potatoes if you are using them. Adding the liquid takes restraint.
5. Pour in only about four hundred millilitres. It should come partway up, not cover things. Add a whole chilli now if you want aroma. Put a tight fitting lid on the pot. Turn the heat right down to low.
6. Let it cook without lifting the lid. Cooking it takes about an hour. Shake the pot occasionally rather than stirring. Check it once after forty minutes. Add a splash of water only if it is dry. Judging when it is done is straightforward.
7. Take the lid off for the last ten minutes. Let any excess liquid reduce away. It should be a thick sauce at the end. Stir in a handful of greens if using them. Give them about five full minutes.
8. Taste it and adjust the salt now. Serving it is done straight from the pot. Take the pot to the table if you can. Ladle it into bowls or onto plates. Make sure everyone gets chicken and plantain. Put chilli sauce on the table. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• A sufuria is the plain straight-sided aluminium pot used across East and Central Africa, which came inland along the Swahili trade routes; the dish takes its name from the vessel, which tells you the method matters most.
• Everything goes into one sealed pot with very little liquid, and the vegetables release enough moisture to braise the whole thing, so the flavours concentrate rather than diluting and very little fuel is used.
• Celery leaves go in as well as the stalks and carry far more flavour, so they should never be thrown away; that celery note is characteristic of the dish.

Substitutions

• Green plantain is essential, since ripe yellow plantain turns sweet and makes a different dish.
• Any chicken pieces work, with bone-in giving more flavour to the pot.

Variations

• Some households brown the chicken first and others put everything in raw.
• Potatoes and greens are added in some homes.
• Igisafuriya in Rwanda is the same dish under the other spelling.

History

Named from Swahili sufuria, the aluminium pot traded inland from the coast; everything cooks in a single sealed vessel.

Frequently asked questions

What is Igisafuliya?

Igisafuliya is a main from Burundi: chicken, plantain and vegetables braised together in one covered pot. Named from Swahili sufuria, the aluminium pot traded inland from the coast; everything cooks in a single sealed vessel.

How long does Igisafuliya take to make?

Igisafuliya takes 30 minutes of preparation and 1 hour 15 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Igisafuliya?

Yes, within limits. Green plantain is essential, since ripe yellow plantain turns sweet and makes a different dish. Any chicken pieces work, with bone-in giving more flavour to the pot.

What is the most important thing to get right in Igisafuliya?

Joint the chicken into serving pieces. Rinse them and pat them fully dry. Season them with salt and black pepper. Never throw the celery leaves away here. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot. Add the chicken pieces skin side down. Brown them for about four minutes a side. Do not crowd the pot at any point.