Kañiwa/“Foondae” with Grilled Chicken and Spinach Stew

Kaniwa/"Foondae" with Grilled Chicken and Spinach stew

Hello Readers! So last week, a friend sent me an article posted by Mail Online UK ranking countries with the best and worst diets. Sierra Leone was 2^nd on the table for the countries with the healthiest diets overall. The smile on my face, broaden like the Grinch’s smile with an exciting idea.

This week’s post was inspired by the Mail Online’s article; Kañiwa/“Foondae” with Grilled Chicken and Spinach Stew. I am convinced Kañiwa is “Foondae” – not sure about spelling). “Foondae”/ Kañiwa is used as a healthy substitute for rice in Sierra Leone. From my online research I learnt it is a cousin of quinoa, or some call it baby quinoa as it is a really tiny grain. Like quinoa, it is a "pseudo-cereal" with a high level of protein (15 to 19 percent) and a more complete balance of amino acids than most grains. (Source- http://wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/whole-grains-a-to-z)

Both of the main ingredients in this post are super healthy. Spinach is full of iron, protein, vitamins and minerals which are good for your vision, skin, and hair. I hope you enjoy reading and hopefully get to try out this recipe. Aprons on!!!

Serving for 4

Ingredients 

Ingredients

A pack of spinach
2 cups of Kañiwa grains
4 medium sized chicken thighs
2 medium sized onions
2 Scotch bonnet peppers
6 cherry tomatoes
50ml olive oil
Maggie seasoning
Chicken seasoning
Black and white, pepper
Teaspoon mixed herbs
1 tinned chopped
Tomato purée 

Cooking Instructions

Spinach Stew

Grilling chicken and cherry tomatoes

1.      Wash and season chicken with chicken seasoning, black and white, pepper

2.      Then grill chicken in a grill pan, 5 minutes on each side on medium heat.

3.      Grill cherry tomato as well 1min on each side and put aside with chicken as this would be used later to garnish the dish.

4.      Slice onions slices lengthwise.

5.       Pre-heat 50ml olive oil in a pot on medium heat.

6.      Then fry onions and chopped tinned tomatoes also adding a teaspoon of mixed herbs and tomato puree into the pot and fry in medium heat for 5 - 10 minutes or until tender

  7.      Put spinach in a big bowl and pour a kettle of hot water over it and leave it to cook by steam for 2 min.

  8.      Drain water from the bowl; using a colander getting rid of all excess water.

  9.      Then stir the drained spinach into the stew. Leave it to simmer in medium heat for about 5 min then add your grilled chicken to the stew.

  10.  Finally leave the stew to cook for further 5 min and your stew is ready.

Frying onions and chopped tomatoes

Spinach added to stew 

Dish Almost done

Kañiwa/“Foondae”

1.      Boil 700ml of water in a pot

2.      Wash “Foondae”/ Kañiwa and add to boiling water with a pinch of salt.

3.      Leave to cook in low heat for about 20 -25min checking it at 5 min intervals.

4.      Should you need to sprinkle a handful of water over the kañiwa if the grain are still uncooked. 

Kaniwa/"Foondae" with Grilled Chicken and Spinach stew

Coconut Rice and Coconut Stew

Coconut Rice and Stew garnished with coriander and black pepper corn

Hello NCC readers! Hope your weekend was cool and fresh and you enjoyed our typical lovely British Spring. I had a wonderful day yesterday hanging out with my crèche kids from church at our Jesus super hero event.

Before I headed down I quickly conjured up some Coconut Rice and Coconut Stew. This dish is prepared the exact same way as Jollof Rice and stew. The only difference is coconut cream is added to give the coconut flavour to both the rice and stew.

Ingredients 

1. 2 cups of Rice
2. Assorted meat of your choice (chicken, beef on bone, etc)
3. 1 tin of chopped tomato
4. 4 medium size onions
5. 3 bell peppers (green, red and yellow)
6. 2 scotch bonnet peppers
7. Spring onions
8. Seasoning
9. Vegetable oil
10. Tomato puree

Part of the Ingredients ready for cooking

Coconut Stew

1.      Wash and season your meat.

2.      Steam seasoned meat for about 20 mins

3.      Chop onions, peppers and spring onions. Divide the chopped vegetable into half. Half for the stew and the other half for the rice.

4.      Blend one onion with 2 scotch peppers

5.      Pour oil into hot sauce pan and heat to cooking temperature.

6.      Once oil is heated, fry chopped onions, peppers, spring onions and chopped tomato for about 20 mins

7.      Add bits of the blended pepper and onions into the stew whilst the above is cooking.

8.      Add season and salt and coconut cream for flavour and 2 squeezes of tomato puree to give the stew colour.

9.      Add seasoned meat to the pot with fried stew and turn the heat low.

10.  Leave stew to cook for a further 10 minutes or until all the water from the stew has evaporated.

 

Coconut Rice and Stew

Coconut Rice

1.      Fry chopped onions, bell pepper, chopped tomato in oil  

2.      Wait until the vegetable softens, then add tomato purée and other half of coconut cream.

3.      Wash rice and add to the stew and mix thoroughly together (add more tomato purée to give the rice the colour you want

4.      Add water and bring to boil on a low heat. Add water as you go along until rice is perfectly cooked to your taste.

 Voila! Dish is done! 

Yum Yum