Mabawa

Ingredients

Wings

• 1.5 kgchicken wings, jointed into flats and drumettes

Marinade

• juice of 3 limes
• 8garlic cloves, crushed
• 1thumb ginger, grated
• 2 tbspoil
• 1 tbspcurry powder
• 1 tspturmeric
• 1 tspground cumin
• 1 tspground coriander
• 1 tsppaprika
• 2hot chillies, finely chopped
• 1 tspsalt
• 1/2 tspground black pepper

To baste

• 3 tbspoil
• juice of 1 lime

Cassava chips

• 800 gcassava, peeled
• 1 litrefrying oil
• salt

To serve

• lime wedges
• a chilli and lime sauce
• sliced raw onion

Directions

1. Cut each wing at the joint into a flat and a drumette. Discard the wing tip or keep it for stock. Pat them thoroughly dry with kitchen paper. Mix the lime juice, garlic, ginger and oil in a large bowl. Add all the spices, the chopped chilli, the salt and the pepper.
2. Whisk it into a thick loose paste. Add the wings and turn them with your hands. Work the marinade under the skin where you can. Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours. Turn them once during that time.
3. Take the wings out of the fridge thirty minutes before grilling. Cold wings straight from the fridge burn outside before cooking through. Set the grill about fifteen centimetres above the coals. Now grilling, which needs turning and patience. Shake the excess marinade off each wing before it goes on. Wet marinade drips and causes flare-ups.
4. Lay the wings on the grill over the coals. Turn them every three or four minutes. Move any that are colouring too fast to the cooler side. Grill them for twenty to twenty-five minutes in total. Mix the oil with the lime juice. Brush the wings with it each time you turn them.
5. Start basting only after the first ten minutes. Basting too early means the oil burns off before it does anything. Cut into the thickest part of a drumette. The juices should run clear with no pink at the bone. Peel the cassava thoroughly, removing the pink underskin. Cut it in half lengthways and remove the woody central fibre.
6. Cut it into thick even chip shapes. Cassava contains cyanogenic compounds and must be cooked through. Put the chips in a pot and cover them with water. Boil them for fifteen minutes until a knife goes in easily. Drain them and let them steam dry for five minutes. Heat the frying oil to about 180C. Fry the boiled chips in batches for four minutes. They should be deep golden and crisp outside.
7. Lift them onto a rack and salt them immediately. Now serving, which is done hot and in paper. Pile the wings and chips together on paper or a plate. Scatter sliced raw onion over them. Serve lime wedges and chilli sauce alongside.

Technique

• Grill over glowing embers with no flames, which scorch the skin without cooking the meat.
• Shake off excess marinade, since drips cause flare-ups.
• Boil the cassava before frying, as cassava must be cooked through.

Substitutions

• A very hot oven grill in place of charcoal, though the smoke is lost.
• Potato chips in place of cassava.

Variations

• With whole chicken pieces instead of wings.
• Made hotter, with far more chilli in the marinade.
• Served with fried plantain instead of cassava.

History

An evening street trade in Moroni, where vendors grill wings on oil-drum braziers along the seafront.

Frequently asked questions

What is Mabawa?

Mabawa is a street food from Comoros: marinated chicken wings grilled over charcoal, sold with cassava chips. An evening street trade in Moroni, where vendors grill wings on oil-drum braziers along the seafront.

How long does Mabawa take to make?

Mabawa takes 20 min plus 4 hours marinating of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Mabawa?

Yes, within limits. A very hot oven grill in place of charcoal, though the smoke is lost. Potato chips in place of cassava.

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

Cut it into thick even chip shapes. Cassava contains cyanogenic compounds and must be cooked through. Put the chips in a pot and cover them with water. Boil them for fifteen minutes until a knife goes in easily. Drain them and let them steam dry for five minutes. Heat the frying oil to about 180C. Fry the boiled chips in batches for four minutes. They should be deep golden and crisp outside.