Jamaican chicken curry with sweet love apples and rum
Spicy and coconutty, Jamaican curry really can contain whatever vegetables you have to hand, so you can use sweet potato instead of pumpkin, or add peppers or carrots. It can also be hotter, so up the chilli content if you want to. My own additions to the traditional Jamaican version are caramelized tomatoes (tomatoes are known as ‘love apples’ there) – I like the sweetness they bring at the end – and a good slosh of rum (just enough to be detectable). I mean, why not?
Ingredients
- 650 g 1lb 7oz skinless boneless chicken thighs or leg meat, cut into big chunks
- 2 tbsp curry powder
- 75 ml 2½fl oz lime juice, plus the juice of ½ lime, plus the finely grated zest of 2
- 3 tbsp coconut oil or any other oil you prefer
- salt and pepper
- 500 g 1lb 2oz butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into chunks
- 250 g 9oz potato, peeled and cut into chunks
- 2 tsp ground allspice
- 3 garlic cloves roughly chopped
- 2 cm ¾in root ginger, peeled and grated
- 2 red chillies halved, deseeded and shredded
- 6 spring onions chopped
- 4 sprigs of thyme plus the leaves of 1 sprig
- 400 ml can of coconut milk
- 4 large tomatoes chopped
- 1 tsp soft light brown sugar
- 3 tbsp rum
Instructions
- Put the chicken, 1 tbsp of the curry powder and the 75ml (2½fl oz) of lime juice into a bowl.
- Toss together with your hands then cover with cling film, put in the fridge and leave to marinate overnight (or for at least four hours).
- Bring it to room temperature before cooking.
- Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a heavy-based casserole, season the chicken with salt and pepper and, working in batches, brown the chicken all over.
- Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
- Add the squash and potato and cook over a medium heat to get a little colour on them for about six minutes.
- Now add the rest of the curry powder, the allspice, garlic, ginger, chillies and spring onions and cook for about two minutes, stirring.
- Return the chicken, together with any juices which have run out of it, to the pan with the marinade.
- Add the 4 sprigs of thyme, the lime zest and coconut milk and season.
- Heat until the mixture is at a gentle simmer, then leave it to cook for about 30 minutes.
- The chicken and vegetables will become tender and the liquid will reduce.
- About five minutes before the curry is ready, heat the rest of the oil in a frying pan and add the tomatoes.
- Season.
- Cook them until they are soft and a lot of their liquid has evaporated.
- Add the sugar and allow the tomatoes to caramelize a little.
- Add these to the curry.
- If the sauce seems a little thin, then gently mash some of the squash and potatoes with a fork to thicken the sauce.
- Add the rum and heat through.
- Check for seasoning.
- Although you will feel like reaching for the coriander, it’s not right for this: thyme is the thing.
- Add a final sprinkling of it and a really generous squeeze of lime juice.