The bubbling of a pot of stew on the stove is one of the best sounds one can hear. Stew, one of the most versatile dishes, has been adapted to the Guyanese cuisine over the years. It is one of the most common Guyanese dishes and can be prepared with a variety of meats like chicken, beef and even fish. This dish can be served with rice but some prefer roti or bread. Read on to learn how to prepare Guyanese Style Fish Stew and Chicken Stew.
What is Stew?
A stew is a dish of meat and/or vegetables slowly cooked in liquid and served with gravy. In Guyana, a stew is typically made with tomatoes, tomato paste or cubes that produces its tantalizing reddish-orange colour. Some of the most common stews are Fish Stew, Chicken Stew and Beef Stew. Fish Stew can be made with a variety of fish but snapper, trout and salmon are among the most desirable. In most cases, when cooking Fish Stew, the fish is fried before adding to the gravy. For the Chicken Stew, the thighs and other meaty parts are usually used. The meat or fish is added to the savoury broth and leave to simmer until the flavour is absorbed into the chicken or fish. While the broth/stock is made with tomatoes, vegetables like carrots, pepper and onions can be added to enhance the flavour of the dish. In fact, a Fish Stew in incomplete without having lots of onions. Sometimes potatoes are added to Fish and Chicken Stew to thicken the gravy. Stew can be served with rice, roti (paratha or sada) or even bread.
Guyanese Style Fish Stew
Ingredients:
- 6 fish fillets (approximately 1lb.)
- 1 onion
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 2 springs of thyme
- salt to taste
- 1 wiri wiri pepper
- 1 tablespoon of tomato paste
- 2 cups of water
- 1/2 cup flour, seasoned with coriander, fish seasoning
- oil to fry
Optional: tomatoes
Method:
- Heat oil in a pan.
- Coat fish in batter and fry.
- In a separate pan add oil and sautee onions, tomatoes and grated garlic until light brown.
- Add salt, tomato paste, pepper, thyme, (tomatoes if you choose) then saute for a few minutes.
- Next, add the fried fish and cook on low heat.
- Add about two (2) cups of water and allow the mixture to boil.
- Let it simmer then remove from heat and serve.
Stewed Fish – Photo by: By Sebestian Shultz – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40974356
Guyanese Style Chicken Stew
Ingredients:
- 3 lbs chicken (cut up for stew)
- meat seasoning
- 3 tbsp green seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp oil
Gravy
- 2-3 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 medium yellow cut onion
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 6-7 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
- 2 stems eschallots, sliced
- 2-3 wiri wiri peppers or desired hot pepper
- 2-3 small chicken bouillon cubes (Maggi)
- 3-4 tbsp oil for cooking
- Salt to taste
Method:
- Wash and dry chicken.
- Chop into small pieces.
- Season with green seasoning, ginger, salt, and oil and leave to marinate.
- Sautee onion, garlic, pepper then add tomatoes.
- Add tomato paste, thyme, cube (Maggi) and chicken.
- Allow to cook for about twenty (20) minutes.
- Add water to cover the meat and let it boil until chicken is thoroughly cooked.
- When the stew is almost done, add eschalot.
Stewed Chicken -Photo by Steven Depolo (https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevendepolo/5018879785)
Fish Stew and Chicken Stew in Guyana
Fish Stew and Chicken Stew are two of the more commons dishes in Guyana. They are relatively simple to prepare, especially if you’re now learning to cook. You just need to sautee the seasonings and veggies before adding the meat or fish and leave to simmer. Ensure sure you have some tomatoes, or cubes to add to give it the typical Guyanese flavour. If you’re looking to add extra texture to your Fish Stew, fry the fish before adding it to the simmering broth. You can also marinate the chicken in advance to let it fully absorb the spices. Stew is a part of our native cuisine of Guyana whether its Fish, Chicken or Beef Stew. Tell us in the comments what’s your favourite Guyanese Stew!
Last Updated: 2020-06-27
