Some series get an upgrade after a few episodes or seasons in. Not us. We actually have a bit of a downgrade.

My wife and I decided to move to a house where Sam could have a bit more space to run around and be a kid. The tiny city apartment wasn’t so comfortable during a pandemic.

Starting with this episode, we’ll be coming to you from a brand new kitchen. The irony is the kitchen in our house is considerably smaller and less impressive the the one in our city apartment. Go figure!

Hopefully at some point soon, we’ll make some changes to our kitchen. But for now, we’ll work with what we got. And we’re testing it out with Belizean cuisine this week.

THE CUISINE

Belize is a tiny country that connects the Caribbean to Central America. It is on the same landmass as Mexico and Guatemala, but facing the mouth of the Caribbean Sea.

The geography is quite varied for such a small country with lots of beaches, jungles, swamps, and mountains. Weather wise, it is quite tropical and humid. So what does that mean for its cuisine?

Well, the cuisine consists of lots of seafood, tropical fruits, and spices. But much of the cuisine is influenced by the people who have inhabited the land. This includes the native Maya and Mestizo (a mix of European and Indigenous American) people, who are very fond of corn, maize, peppers, and chiles.

Both the Kriols and Garifunas (mixed African and Indigenous American) cook with cassava, sweet potatoes, and meat. The famous Belizean rice and beans is certainly influenced by these African cultures.

The dishes have a lot of similarities to Mexican and Guatemalan cuisine, but are also influenced by the cuisines of the Chinese, Lebanese, Indians, and even Mennonites.

Belize is also the only country in Central America whose official language is English. So it’ll be easy to exclaim “delicious” when you visit and try the food.

BELIZEAN FOOD IN NEW YORK

There does not seem to be a dedicated Belizean restaurant in NYC. Isn’t that sad?

That doesn’t mean there aren’t Belizeans that live in the city. In fact, there is a Garifuna community (they don’t only come from Belize, but also Honduras, Guatemala, and Nicaragua) that resides mostly in the South Bronx.

And I have read accounts of Garifuna food festivals, including one run by Weiga/Let’s Eat. It’s unclear to me if they are still hosting these, but you better believe when I hear about it, I will be making my way up to the northern borough.

THE VIDEO

Sam wants to go to Belize for the beaches and animals. I want to go there for the food. Together, we would have an amazing trip.

As mentioned, this is our first video in our new house and new kitchen. And because of that, we are still adjusting to how to create these recipes and videos properly. So we are sorry for any technical issues here.

In the weeks to come, we will also figure out the best way to capture our conversations and the food in our new set-up.

But for now, I think you’ll enjoy both our discussions about Belize and this mouthwatering food. Don’t miss it!

THE DISH

When I heard the National Dish of Belize was rice and beans, I didn’t understand how complex it would be.

This combination is different from beans and rice, which is a serving of cooked beans and cooked rice. With Belizean Rice and Beans, you cook the rice with the beans (together in the same pot) and the addition of coconut milk gives it a very distinct flavor and richness.

Red kidney beans are the standard beans to include. Some recipes may list black beans or pinto beans, but from what I can gather red kidney beans are the agreed upon legume for this National Dish.

The recipe is a bit time consuming and complex. I don’t profess to getting it right, but it’s a learning process. I imagine the Belizean families who are making rice and beans have been doing it for generations.

In Belize, rice and beans are served at just about every meal as an accompaniment to meat dishes, including the very popular stew chicken.

Stew chicken in Belize is indeed stewed, but it is known as “stew.” The most important flavoring is Recado rojo (see below) which gives the meat a distinct red color and a rich earthy pepper flavor. It actually goes really well with the rice and beans. Who knew?

SPECIAL INGREDIENTS

Recado Rojo

The one thing that might not be recognizable to most homecooks that live outside of Central America is something recado rojo. It’s a spice blend that features another ingredient that might be considered special is called annatto seed.

Annatto is a bright red seed that comes from the fruit of the achiote tree. It’s used in Latin American, Caribbean, and some Asian cuisines. The seed itself is bright red and very hard. It needs to be put into a grinder or blender to really be broken down. It also had a habit of dying everything an orange-red hue. My cutting board and mortar and pestle will never forget the annatto seeds I introduced.

Flavorwise, annatto has a subtle nutty peppery flavor. The color of the recedo rojo (red for those who do not speak a lick of Spanish) certainly comes from the annatto seed, but the flavor comes from all the other spices.

Like most blends, recedo varies from recipe to recipe but it is more often than not comprised of garlic, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, black pepper, salt, and clove. It’s then moistened with vinegar or sour orange juice, rolled into balls, and dried. You can buy this in Latin American stores, but as I learned most Belizean households make it themselves, I figured I’d give it a try.

THE RECIPE

Recipes inspired by:

thespicehouse.com
tastebelize.com
ibreatheimhungry.com
youtube.com/c/TheBarePantryShow/

Stew Chicken with Rice and Beans from Belize

A typical weekly meal in Belize, this stewed chicken is mostly flavored with the traditional recado rojo blend (which you can make at home or purchase in local Latin American markets) and is served with the National Dish of rice and beans, which is a lot more complexly flavored than it sounds thanks to red kidney beans and coconut milk.

Recado Rojo

1.5 tbspn annatto seeds (also known as achiote)
1/2 tspn cumin seeds
2 tspn dried oregano
1/2 tbspn corainder seeds
3 cloves
1/2 tbspn black peppercorns
5 garlic cloves
1 tspn salt
1 tbspn white vinegar
1 tbspn orange juice (Seville or sour oranges are best)

Rice and Beans

1 cup dried red kidney beans
2 cups white rice
1.5 tbspn coconut oil
1/2 tspn dried thyme
1/2 tspn cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
4 garlic cloves (chopped in half)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 tspn fresh cilantro (chopped)
4-5 cups water
2 yellow onions (chopped)
2-4 sprigs of fresh thyme
salt
pepper
1 cup coconut milk

Stew Chicken

Marinade

2-3 pounds chicken quarters, skin-on and bone-in (thighs and legs)
lemon juice, from one lemon
1 tbspn white vinegar
1 tspn dried oregano
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 tbspn soy sauce
1 tbspn worcestershire sauce
2 tspn dried thyme
2 tspn cumin

Cooking

2 tbspn coconut oil
1 yellow onion (chopped)
3 garlic cloves (roughly chopped)
1 green bell pepper (chopped)
1 tbspn cilantro (chopped)

Recado Rojo (also can purchase in the store)

Grind annatto seeds, oregano, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, oregano, cloves, and black peppercorns together in a spice grinder.
In a mortar and pestle, crush garlic cloves with salt until well crushed.
Add spices into mortar and continue to crush, mixing well. Moisten with white vinegar and orange juice to turn into a paste.
Once it achieves the right texture, roll the mixture into balls. Put in an airtight container and let them dry overnight.

Marinate Chicken

Wash chicken with lemon juice and water. Pat dry.
Rehydrate recado with a little white vinegar.
Add chicken to big bowl. Add recado, 1 tpsn white vinegar, garlic, oregano, soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, black pepper, cumin, and thyme. Rub into chicken.
Let marinate for 30 minutes or more in the refrigerator.

Cook Chicken

Heat coconut oil in large pot at medium high heat.
Brown chicken without moving. About 5-7 minutes per side.
Add onions, garlic, green peppers, cilantro, chicken marinade, and enough water to just barely cover the chicken. Bring to boil, stir, lower heat, and cover. Simmer for 45-60 minutes.

Rice and Beans

Soak dried beans in water overnight (at least 6 hours). Drain.
Heat 1.5 tbspn coconut oil over medium low heat. Add drained beans, cumin, thyme, bay leaf, chopped garlic, cilantro, and water. Boil and then lower to a simmer. Stir, cover, and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Mix in one chopped onion and stir. Add water if needed. Let simmer for another 45-60 minutes or until tender. Stir regularly to prevent burning.
When beans are cooked, set aside.
In a separate pot, heat the other 1.5 tbspn of coconut oil over medium heat. Add the other onion, minced garlic and stir. Cook for a few minutes until onions are translucent. Add thyme sprigs and stewed beans.
Mix all together. Season with salt and pepper.
Add rice. Mix well and cook for no more than a minute.
Add coconut milk and 1 cup of water. Bring to boil, then simmer and cover. Cook for 15 minutes or until all the liqid has been absorbed by the rice. Let rest and then fluff.

HOW I SCREWED IT UP

I want to say off the bat that this was a very complicated recipe and from many of the You Tube videos I watched online, it seems like many people struggle with these dishes, especially the seemingly simple rice and beans.

That being said, these came out pretty good. I imagine Belizean cooks would have something to say about some of my techniques and I probably could have made it better, but the flavors were there and we really enjoyed both the chicken and the rice and beans.

Unfortunately I burned a little bit of both the rice and the beans. You need to keep a very careful eye on both when cooking and stir regularly, especially the beans. I managed to save the beans by adding a bit more water and stirring. Both had a bit of crunch to them, which I actually enjoyed, but I don’t think is the expected outcome.

I also used lite coconut milk (it is all we had on hand) and that was probably a mistake. Full fat coconut milk would have given it a rounder and more pronounced flavor. And if you can get fresh coconut milk from a coconut, of course, that would have been the most ideal option.

With the chicken, the biggest problem I think I had was that I used way too much water. The recipes I pulled from all said to just cover the chicken but didn’t specify the amount of water. I clearly added too much. The sauce came out a bit watery and I think it all could (and should have) been more concentrated.

I also was a bit restrained with my use of the recedo. The balls I made smelled very strong and I didn’t want to overdo it, but in retrospect, I should have used an entire ball.

So we really enjoyed dinner. My wife like it more than expected since she is not a fan of red kidney beans. But was it the most accurate Belizean dinner? Absolutely not. But that’s ok. Remember, this is a journey.

SAM’S REACTION

So while my wife enjoyed the rice and beans cooked together, my son was not having any of it.

He is at the age where everything must be separated. So I knew better and cooked a batch of rice by itself (with coconut milk). He ate that up.

Sam is generally a fan of rice, but this is the first time he had it cooked with coconut milk and I think he really liked the extra richness.

For some reason, he wouldn’t go near the chicken. I thought for sure he would eat the chicken if I cut it up and served it without the stewed sauce. But he stuck with the rice.

He also added soy sauce because he is used to that as a rice seasoning. There is a slight Chinese influence in Belizean cooking, so this might not have been so far off.

NEXT TIME

We’re heading back to Africa – to the small western nation that is considered the birthplace of voodoo. Sounds scary? It’s not! It’s Benin.