Recipe: Belize recipes - Belizean Rice and Beans, Stewed Chicken, Belizean Potato Salad, Fried Plantains, Sauteed Ripe Plantain, Plantain Chips (Cooking Banana Chips)

BELIZEAN RICE & BEANS

1/2 pound red kidney beans
2 cups rice
1 cup thick coconut milk
1 medium onion (sliced)
1/2 bell (green) pepper
1 clove garlic (optional)
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

Cover beans in water, and soak overnight. Put beans in pot, add onions, bell pepper, garlic, and enough water to boil until beans are tender and whole. Add coconut milk, and seasonings. Add rice to beans, and cook over gentle heat until liquid is absorbed. Stir gently with a fork, and add a little water as necessary, until rice is cooked.

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STEWED CHICKEN

Note: This recipe applies to most any meat. It is especially good with chicken. Delete sugar for meat other than chicken.

Chicken (this can be whole chicken, or chicken parts of your choice)
2 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoon cooking oil
1 medium onion (sliced)
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 tablespoon lea & perrins sauce
1/2 green (bell) pepper (strips or diced)
black pepper salt (or use seasoned salt) garlic powder (or 1 clove garlic) water

Slice onion and bell pepper, and set aside. Sprinkle chicken lightly with salt (or seasoned salt), black pepper, and garlic powder. If using garlic clove, mince clove and add to chicken when you add water.

Heat oil in pot, and add sugar. Sugar will caramelize (this is what gives the chicken colour). Add chicken and brown it well. Add onions and green pepper, and cook for a couple minutes. Add vinegar and lea & perrins sauce to a cup of water, and add to pot. Cook on medium to medium-low heat till done. (If using garlic cloves, add at this time). Keep adding water as needed to make gravy. This dish is very popular, and is served with stewed beans, split peas, rice and beans, or white rice cooked in coconut milk.

Fried or baked plantain usually accompanies this dish. Most Sundays in Belize, you will find Red Beans & Rice, Fried Plantain, Potato Salad, and Stewed Chicken on the menu.

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BELIZEAN POTATO SALAD

2 pounds potatoes (peel, dice and boil until tender, drain & cool)
1 pound frozen mix vegetables, cooked per package instructions. (May also use canned mix vegetables)
5 eggs (hard boiled), diced
3/4 cup miracle whip salad dressing
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
salt & ground black pepper to taste

Let potatoes and mix vegetables cool before handling. Place potatoes, mix vegetables, and eggs in a bowl, and toss. Season with salt and black pepper to taste ( remember you can always add more seasoning, so start with about 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper). Add 1 tablespoon mustard to 3/4 cup miracle whip salad dressing. Stir until mustard is mixed in with salad dressing, and add to potato mixture. Stir. There are several variations on this potato salad: add diced onions and bell (green) pepper, or cooked macaroni, or canned mix vegetables and/or green peas, or try different salad dressing or mayonnaise.

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Fried Plantains

Serves 4 as a side dish to fried or baked Fish, Pork Chops, Chicken or soups

4 Plantains, Green (they look like bananas)
3 cloves Garlic, mashed
1 tbsp. Salt
1 quart Water
1 pint Vegetable oil for frying

Mash garlic with salt to a paste. Add to Water and stir well to mix.

Score plantains skin deep along opposite sides and trim of tips 1/2 inch at each end. Under running water peel off skin (makes peeling easier). Cut peeled green plantains into pieces 1 inch thick and place in Garlic water to soak. Do not discard garlic water when plantain is removed later.

Wash, dry then dice Fat Back into 1/2 inch pieces. Fry in vegetable oil to a golden crisp and drain well on paper towel.

Take pieces of plantain drain well and fry in deep oil being careful not to splatter hot oil. Fry to a deep yellow color (do not brown) and drain off oil on paper towel. Flatten fried plantain on wax paper, rewet slightly mashed plantain in original reserved garlic water, shake off excess water and return to hot oil for 1.5 minutes drain off excess oil and place in deep bowl until all pieces have been processed.

Serve hot with entree (Fried fish, chicken or pork chops or with soup or broth).

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Saut ed Ripe Plantain)

4 Plantains, Very Ripe (the peel may be half black outside but the plantain inside is firm)
1/2 cup Butter or Margarine
2 cloves Clove spice stick
2 sticks Cinnamon
2 Tblsp Brown Sugar

Peel ripe plantains and ensure the the pulp is firm and smells sweet.

Heat butter or margarine (add spices as desired)

Sautee in at medium heat until browned about 10 minutes.

Sprinkle with brown sugar, if desired.

Serve immediately as a side dish or dessert.

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Plantain Chips (Cooking Banana Chips)

Six Green Plantain
2 pt. vegetable oil or shortening

Peel plantain. Slice thinly at an angle lengthwise into dip size chips. Heat oil and fry slices until crisp. Lightly salt. Serves 4.