It is not a novelty to say that African,
Latin-American and Asian food traditions have many ingredients in common
because, after all, we share the same imaginary equator line. Our gorgeous and
frequently envied -by the British- climate allows crops like plantain, corn and
cassaba to grow in abundance, becoming the 'daily bread' in the dining table of
millions of families across many countries. Although food and good weather are
of course exotic elements to share intercontinentally, we also have one plague
in common that is capable of destroying the lives of thousands of people every
year in those countries. Mosquitoes are the most dangerous animals on the
planet and malaria is one of their many unfortunate legacies.
This week's post is a courtesy from my dear
friend Faith Wilkinson (née Kimuli), who has suffered and luckily survived malaria
in more than a few occasions when she lived in the kingdom of Bunyoro in
Western Uganda. Uganda is the country with the worldwide highest incidence of
malaria and one of its typical dishes is Matooke accompanying beef/chicken/fish
stew, served with vegetables or rice.
We are sharing this recipe today to support
the fundraising campaign of Malaria Mission and their creation of an innovative
way to fight this plague, reduce the impact of this disease and potentially save
millions of lives. Their idea is targeting the malaria mosquitoes to prevent the
spread of the disease. And let’s be honest, we all hate mosquitoes, don’t
we?
Let's help these culinary traditions to be
preserved, not in a book or a blog like this written by strangers, but mouth to
mouth, from parents to children who don't need to become survivors of their own
living conditions.
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| © The Teaspoon |
Ingredients
(serves 3-4)
For the matooke
4-5 Green plantains (you can buy these at the Afro-Caribbean markets or the Indian shops, ask for matooke)
For the chicken stew
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 broiler chicken, cleaned and cut into pieces
1 onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
3 ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon curry powder (mild) or All-Purpose seasoning
1/4 teaspoon salt
2-3 sprigs of parsley
For the vegetables
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 aubergine, cut into cubes
5 white tomatoes, cut into cubes or thick slices
1-2 sprigs of parsley
1 small shallot, chopped
1 avocado (optional, as a side dish)
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| © The Teaspoon |
Preparation
method
Matooke
To make the
matooke peel the skin off the plantain. The
plantains should be a clean cream colour after they have been peeled.
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| © The Teaspoon |
The trick
is to put each banana in a pot of cold water when you have peeled it so that it
does not become ‘dirty’. After you have all the bananas in a pot of cold water,
wash off the sup and peel off any black or green bits.
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| © The Teaspoon |
Fill
a cooking pan with water about midway and then add
the green peelings into that saucepan. Place the plantains into a large or
medium freezer bag properly sealed and place on top of the peelings (this is to give flavour). Cover with a lid and boil until the plantains turn yellow. This will take about 40
minutes. Then take the bag out, discard the water. Mash the plantains really quick so
they don’t harden and when you are happy with the texture, place the mash back
into the bag and place foil paper round it and simmer in the saucepan for
another 10 minutes.
The trick is to mash the bananas while they are still in the bag, use the
pictures for your reference.
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| © The Teaspoon |
Please note that you can also use a steamer to cook the plantains, it will be quicker and less messy.
Chicken stew
In
a cooking pan, heat the oil, add the chicken cut into pieces and cover the pan
with a lid. Stir occasionally to make sure the meat does not burn. Once the
chicken turns golden brown, incorporate the chopped onions and continue
stirring. Once the onions are crystallised add the chopped tomatoes
and the garlic. Continue stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the salt and the
curry. Once the tomatoes are softened add a couple of cups of water until the
meat sits just below the water line. Cover with a lid and cook for about 30
minutes. Make sure you keep checking the water level and add more if necessary,
so it doesn't burn. The stew will be ready once the chicken is cooked of
course, but also the sauce needs to thicken a little bit. When this happens add the chopped parsley and remove the pan from the heat.
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| © The Teaspoon |
Vegetables
In
a saucepan heat the teaspoon of olive oil and add the aubergine and white tomatoes, cook until tender, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add also a pinch of salt. Incorporate the shallot and chopped parsley and cook for another 5 minutes until the shallot is crystallised.
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| © The Teaspoon |
Now serve your dish, the matooke and chicken stew in one plate along with the avocado. The vegetables or rice can be served on the side. Please note that the matooke needs to be served hot and quickly, whilst it is soft and sticky like a puree, otherwise it will harden and its not the same.
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| © The Teaspoon |
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