Kuku Paka (Chicken With Coconut) Recipe (2024)

Deliciousnessss! Similar to another recipe I LOVE -
- Never have serranos in fridge so I add red pepper flakes
- I actually love raw marinades so I suggest leaving a bit separate from the chicken, whir in another 2 tomatoes and using it as a scrumptious fresh sauce for your flatbread
- 1/2 tsp orange or tangerine zest is da bomb
- PLEASE use whole fat coconut milk - I promise u won't get fat from it ;)

I don't have an outdoor grill. I'm thinking of browning these in a cast iron pan and then finishing them in the oven. Has anyone done it this way, who may have some advice?

a couple ideas from my jewish kenyan grandmama: 1. add a teaspoon or two of decent quality curry powder to the other dry spices when making the sofrito 2. before you fry up the sofrito ingredients add the excess chicken skin (u dd save that didn't you?) and render it in the coconut oil fishing it out when crisp and when no-one else is looking to eat as a snack for the cook

I am really not into grilling either, so experiment. So, for those without grills or the desire to mess with them, browning the chicken in a cast iron pan first after marinading, then pouring on the rest of the sauce and putting into the oven should yield about the same results. The charcoal grill may impart some smokey flavor, but I really think you will get the same result in the end. You could also cook covered for a while then uncover and broil them just at the end or even at end.

Fry and sear on cast iron pan 5-8 mins on each side then transfer to 425 F oven for 20-25 mins for bone-in thighs.

When I tasted this, it got me excited like no dish has in quite a while. The sweetness of the coconut plays fantastically with the lemon. My wife, who is generally against lemon and also against putting a crispy grilled chicken skin into a sauce, loved it as well. She even said it was made better with sauce.
I made this with a whole cut-up chicken, because that was what I had on hand, and about 1-1/2 serranos, because kids. My 8 yr old said it was as good as sushi, and that's saying a lot.

I made this with all bone-in, skin-on thighs, baking them on a sheet pan lined with parchment for about 40 minutes at 425, then broiling for a couple more to really crisp up the skin and get a little bit of char. Made the sauce exactly as directed while the thighs cooked and then served them with basmati rice.

Oh sheesh!!! Delicious delicious delicious!!! Make it!! I made it pretty much as in recipe except I only added 2 seranos, cause I bought 4 but wanted to make a green papaya salad to go with and needed them for that, which I STRONGLY recommend!! I was going to cut a papaya for breakfast but it was not ripe. Who knew this would make my dinner the best ever?? Seriously. Get a large green papaya and make a salad (find on this site) and then also make some pickled green papaya to go with it. Rice.

I made this tonight - amazing, excellent flavours - only change I made was I used only 1 can of coconut, and had the perfect amount of sauce. Will definitely be making this again.

This literally means "chicken cat" in swahili. Kuku Paka is a game that children in Kenya play - similar to duck duck goose in America. Just thought you should know if you are cooking it.

I'm going to try this dish today, and look forward to it! I always try recipes as written the 1st time, and make notes about changes in future. Thinking ahead: couldn't this dish also be made by coating chicken with paste and then placing into coconut milk to marinate, the way that Buttermilk Roasted Chicken can be? When ready, remove chicken, pat dry and grill. Use marinade to prepare sauce as written. Just wondering.

Yes. With another recipe for something else.

I loved reading this recipe as I grew up in Mombasa and make kuku paka often for dinner but with a whole chicken, skinned and cut into parts. For my quick weeknight version I sear the marinated chicken (I use a paste made with ginger, garlic, cilantro, lemon and tumeric) in a wok and pour the coconut milk sauce (blended with sautéed onions, tomatoes, tumeric) over it and let the chicken simmer with 2 whole chilies until cooked. The juices from the chicken add to the sauce. Finish with lemon.

This is arguably my favorite chicken dish EVER. The flavors are killer - creamy, but bright and decadent as it comes. I reduced the sauce for about an hour to get it to the batter consistency - awesome texture. I also removed the skins and would bet the meal was better for it. Browned in a cast iron with coco oil, then popped into the oven at 375. I recommend serving it with the Jollof Rice (recipe from NYTimes) and a light salad!

This is a family favourite. For convenience, I cook the chicken pieces in the oven in a deep oven tray for half an hour while I cook the sauce on the hob, adding a squeeze of lemon juice at the end. Then I add the sauce to the chicken and bake in the oven for a further 15 mins. I serve with plain basmati rice and a simple green vegetable on the side. So good, I often serve for guests.

1st time, I followed the recipe to the letter. Amazing. Here are my modifications for ease:- make the marinade the night before- use boneless/skinless chicken thighs- sear them in the pan, then put in oven at 325º while you make the sauce- serve with jollof riceMajor crowd pleaser.

Well, I did a quick version: no time to marinate, and no grill, so made the paste, slathered on my chicken quarters, popped them into a 425 oven for 45 minutes while I continued with the sauce on the stovetop. It never got as thick as cake batter--I see some people subtracted one of the cans of coconut milk which seems right--and although the sauce was tasty, the flavors seemed masked by the coconut. After 45 mins., I popped the chicken into the sauce for 5 mins. A solid A-, with my shortcuts.

Really enjoyed this recipe. We substituted the serrano chiles for 2 habanero chilies (Pili Pili Mbuzi is also used a lot in East African cooking) and it was great. Would even add another habanero chili!

Insanely good!I used way more tomatoes so the sauce was kind of more like smoothie thickness and thus needed cooking longer but this is not a bad thing at all cos the flavors get really deep. Added a whole bunch of chili’s - 1 Serrano, 1 jalapeño and 3 of those thin long ones. Just right kinda spicy. Put chicken under grill setting on my oven and then when the sauce was thicker I put it all together and cooked for about 20mins.Serve with rice. So complex and delicious. Don’t skip the lemon

Followed recipe more or less exactly, was good, I had to cook the sofrito 10 minutes longer than receip said. Would add additional Serrano or 2 next time.

Diced chicken breasts1 can of Rotel1 white onion, peeled and quartered1 2-inch piece ginger, peeled4 garlic cloves, peeled2 teaspoons ground cumin1 teaspoon ground coriander2 tablespoons coconut oil1 can of coconut milkLemon wedgesHandful of cilantro leaves, chopped, for garnishRice, chapati or flatbread, for serving

Delicious! I marinated skinless thighs for 3 days before roasting/broiling. The chicken was tender and juicy, and the charring from broiling added great flavor. When cooking the paste pre-coconut milk, add a splash of water occasionally to the fond on bottom of the pan, scrape up and mix back into the paste. This gets it uniformly dark and flavorful without burning. Two cans of coconut milk reduced on medium for ~45 minutes yielded a luscious sauce - rich, creamy, perfect with a lot of lemon.

If I choose not to grill the chicken, could I use liquid smoke to get that Smokey flavor? And if so, how much would be needed for this recipe? Thank you!

Excellent : seared both sides in cast iron skillet; then baked at 425 degrees Used almost 2 cans coconut milk( that’s what we had on hand ) and 3 chilis

Used whole cut up chicken, no skin.did not have coconut oil so I used peanut oil

See general notes- terrific

Made this last night for company and it was exquisite! I marinated the chicken( whole cut up) for several hours and then baked it at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes and then on broil briefly to really crisp it up.I let it simmer for a long time in the coconut sauce and I would absolutely do it this way again- excellent dish!

Maybe try Kaffir lime leaf next time?

I understand that charcoal grilling is not feasible for everyone, but if you can do it, the smoky flavor of the chicken is magical. I am a major chile-head, but I thought 4 serranos would be too much if I wanted to share this with loved ones. It's not too much! There's an edge of spice to the finished dish that is stimulating but not overpowering. This is a deeply savory dish (I serve it over rice with sauteed greens) that I just want to keep eating day after day—yum!