Advertisement

Chicken, Potatoes And Eggs In A Coconut Sauce (Kuku Paka)

29

  • Prep Time1 hr
  • Total Time1 hr
  • Makes6 servings
Chicken, Potatoes And Eggs In A Coconut Sauce (Kuku Paka)

(Photo: Pauli-Ann Carriere)

This is a most beloved recipe. It’s a great example of the fusion of flavours that resulted when the Ismaili people of the Gujarat in India immigrated to East Africa in the 1920s. They brought their knowledge of spices and adapted their use to the new ingredients they found. The combination of those spices with coconut, chicken, eggs and potatoes makes this one of the Nimji family’s all-time favourites. We hope it will be one of yours as well.

Ingredients

  • 4 eggs

  • 4 medium-sized potatoes

  • 2 tbsp coconut oil

  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onion

  • 2 1/4 lbs bone-in chicken piece, skinned

  • 1 cup chopped tomato

  • 1/2 tsp finely minced garlic

  • 1/2 tsp finely minced ginger

  • 1/2 tsp sambal oelek, chili paste, or to taste

  • 1/2 tsp Indian chili powder, or to taste

  • 1 tsp salt

  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin

  • 1/2 tsp ground coriander

  • 1/8 tsp turmeric

  • 1 398-ml can coconut cream

  • 1 398-ml can coconut milk

  • 1/2 cup whipping cream, (or coconut cream if you want the dish to be dairy-free), optional

  • 1 tbsp finely cut coriander leaf

  • 2 to 3 tbsp lemon juice

Instructions

  • Bring water to boil in a small saucepan. Add eggs and cook for 8 min. Drain the water and replace with cold water. Once the eggs have cooled, peel them; slice them in half lengthwise and set aside.

  • Peel and boil potatoes in another pot on medium-high heat until firm but cooked, about 10 to 15 min. Drain and set aside.

  • Heat the oil in a large deep-sided skillet. Add the onions, cook and stir on medium heat until soft and translucent.

  • Stir in the chicken, tomatoes, garlic, ginger, chili paste, chili powder, salt, cumin, coriander and turmeric. Cook on medium until chicken is almost done; it will be tender when pricked and have pink juices flowing from it.

  • Add the coconut cream and milk and enough water so that the gravy does not quite cover the chicken pieces. Cook chicken until juices run clear when pierced.

  • Add the whipping cream (if using), eggs, potatoes, coriander leaves and lemon juice and cook until heated through, 2 to 3 min.


Kitchen tip

To save time, broil chicken pieces on a baking tray until lightly brown before adding to the onions.

Kitchen tip

You can prep the eggs and potatoes a day ahead and keep them in the fridge.

Recipe by Karen Anderson and Noorbanu Nimji

from A Spicy Touch: Family Favourites from Noorbanu Nimji’s Kitchen. Copyright © 2020 by Karen Anderson and Noorbanu Nimji. Reprinted with permission of TouchWood Editions. This silky chicken dish is just one of more than 200 delicious recipes found in Nimji’s fourth and final cookbook. $35, indigo.ca.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement