Green-seasoned chicken, pigeon peas and rice cooked with coconut milk and burnt-sugar browning
Pelau is one of Trinidad and Tobago’s defining one-pot dishes. Green-seasoned chicken is browned in deeply caramelized sugar before rice, pigeon peas, vegetables and coconut milk cook together. The brown sugar must reach a dark mahogany—not black—so it lends color, mild sweetness and the characteristic smoky depth without bitterness.
- Prep
- 35 mins
- Cook
- 1 hour 45 mins
- Total
- 10 hours 20 mins
- Serves
- 8
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Cuisine
- Trinidadian and Tobagonian
The recipe
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Before you start
Soak the pigeon peas for 8 hours, drain, and simmer in fresh water for 40–50 minutes until almost tender; drain. Blend scallion, chadon beni, parsley, thyme, garlic, ginger, Scotch bonnet, lime juice and water into a coarse green seasoning. Mix the chicken with this seasoning, salt and pepper and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Ingredients
For the pigeon peas
For the green seasoning and chicken
For the pelau
Quantities change with servings; cooking times stay the same.
Equipment
- Wide heavy pot with tight lid paid link
- Medium saucepan paid link
- Blender or food processor paid link
- Large mixing bowl paid link
- Wooden spoon paid link
- Chef’s knife paid link
- Cutting board paid link
- Digital kitchen scale paid link
Method
Heat the oil in a wide heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the brown sugar in an even layer.
Let the sugar melt and foam until it becomes a very dark mahogany. Do not allow it to turn black or smell burned.
Immediately add the seasoned chicken, reserving excess marinade. Turn the pieces through the caramel for 8–10 minutes until deeply browned.
Add onion and reserved marinade and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in tomato paste.
Add rinsed rice, pumpkin, carrots and cooked pigeon peas. Turn everything through the browned chicken and aromatics.
Pour in coconut milk and hot water. The liquid should sit about 2 cm above the rice. Bring to a boil and taste for salt.
Reduce to very low heat, cover tightly, and cook for 30–35 minutes without frequent stirring.
Check the rice. If still firm, sprinkle over 100 ml hot water, cover, and cook for 5–10 minutes more.
Rest covered for 10 minutes, then gently turn the pelau from the bottom so the chicken, peas and vegetables are evenly distributed.
Chef’s notes
Watch the sugar continuously. The correct color is dark mahogany; black caramel makes the entire pot bitter.
Have the seasoned chicken ready before starting the browning because the sugar changes quickly.
Use parboiled long-grain rice, which holds its shape well during one-pot cooking.
Tips and variations
Cook the pigeon peas up to 3 days ahead or freeze them in measured portions.
If chadon beni is unavailable, coriander is the closest practical substitute, though its flavor is milder.
Keep extra hot water ready because rice brands absorb different amounts.
For meal prep, rest the pelau fully before dividing it so the grains firm up.
Serve with
Spoon from the bottom of the pot so each serving receives caramelized chicken, seasoned rice, pigeon peas and vegetables.
Storage
Refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Cool quickly in shallow containers. Reheat to 74°C with a small splash of water and keep covered so the rice stays moist.
Nutrition per serving (estimated)
- 860 kcal
- Calories
- 48 g
- Protein
- 98 g
- Carbohydrates
- 31 g
- Fat
- 10 g
- Fibre
- 15 g
- Sugar
- 850 mg
- Sodium
Allergens
Contains coconut. Check stock and tomato paste for unexpected allergens; the remaining core ingredients do not contain the major common allergens.
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Questions
What gives pelau its dark color?
Caramelized brown sugar, often called browning, coats the chicken before the remaining ingredients enter the pot.
Can canned pigeon peas be used?
Yes, drain and rinse them and add them with the rice. Dried peas give firmer texture and fit this from-scratch version.
Why is my pelau bitter?
The sugar was taken beyond dark mahogany and burned. Start again rather than trying to cover the bitterness.
Should pelau be wet or dry?
It should be moist and cohesive but not soupy, with distinct tender grains and juices absorbed into the rice.
