Madam VP Heritage bowl

This bowl has it all! Crunchy, soft, salty, sweet, spicy, hot and fresh. It’s only a copycat recipe, but this delicious combination of Jamaican and Indian flavors is really the jackpot — and it will definitely be going into regular meal prep rotation.

op tips from me:
1) Feel free to use any type of white rice, but I happened to only have sushi rice on hand, which soaked up the flavor nicely.
2) I will say that I normally cook by eye, so this recipe is full of estimations. Feel free to adjust the spices to your liking. I recommend either adding more spicy peppers or spice to the curry.
3) I used my trusty Penzey’s sweet curry powder but feel free to use whichever you prefer.
3) I browned the chicken with just oil, salt and pepper then added in my trusted curry powder. To make sure there was flavor in the chickpeas and potatoes, I simmered those in with the completed sauce and chicken, but you’re welcome to cook your’s in a different order or way.
4) I definitely didn’t properly fry the plantains, so I’d suggest playing around with vegetable oil or other recipes to make yours’ softer.
5) Immigrant Food’s ingredient list didn’t include any fresh herbs, but I LOVE a good cilantro on top of my curries, especially ones with coconut milk. I would definitely recommend through those and even some green onions on top.
6) I didn’t do this and retroactively, I wish I had, but adding a bit of fresh lime juice on top would be the perfect acidic addition.

Time:
This took me only about an hour from start to sitting down to eat to finish, and if you’re not stopping to take photos like me, you might even get it down to 30 minutes. My measurements made about 4 servings.

Ingredients:
1 cup white rice — 0.25 cup chicken broth — 1 tsp ground turmeric — 2 tsp salt — 2 tsp ground pepper — 3 tbsp olive oil — 1 chicken breast, cubed — 3 tbsp curry powder — 1 can coconut milk — 1 tbsp lime juice — 1 can chickpeas — 1/2 potato, cubed — 1 tsp garlic powder — 1 tsp onion powder — 0.5 tsp cayenne powder — 0.5 tsp cumin — 0.5 tsp chili powder — 1 plantain, sliced diagonally into 0.5 inch pieces — 4 tbsp unsalted butter — 1 pineapple chunk, cubed — 0.25 jalapeño, sliced — cilantro for garnish

Instructions: 

– Cook rice according to package instructions. Once it’s cooked, add the chicken broth, salt and pepper and stir.

– Heat a medium-size skillet on medium-high heat with 2 tbsp of olive oil until it shimmers. Add the cubed chicken breast and season with 1 tsp each of salt and pepper. Cook until chicken is browned.

– Add 2 tbsp of the curry powder, then add the coconut milk and lime juice. Stir to combine and let simmer for a minute.

– Add the chickpeas, cubed potatoes, garlic, onion, cayenne, cumin, chili and remaining curry powder. Stir to combine and allow to simmer for at least 6 minutes until the potatoes are soft and the chicken is cooked through.

– Slice the plantain. Melt the butter in a large skillet along with the remaining tbsp of olive oil. Once it’s shimmering, place the plantain slices around the pan. Fry on each side for 4 minutes then remove and pat down with paper towels.

– Slice the pineapple, jalapeños and cilantro. 

– Scoop rice into a bowl. Add curry, then spinach, pineapple, plantains, jalapeños and cilantro.

– Serve and enjoy!