Home > Recipes > Game recipes > Guinea fowl chakhokhbili

Guinea fowl chakhokhbili

Name: Guinea fowl chakhokhbili
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 2-4 tbsp vegetable oil; 1 free-range guinea fowl (about 1kg; or use pheasant or a small chicken), jointed; 1 onion, sliced; ½ tbsp ground blue fenugreek; 3 large ripe tomatoes, chopped; 3 garlic cloves, 2 finely chopped, 1 crushed; Small bunch fresh coriander, leaves and stalks finely chopped; ½ bunch fresh purple (or green) basil, chopped, plus extra to serve; A few fresh dill fronds to serve

By: Olia Hercules

Published: 30 Oct 17
Updated: 18 Mar 24

”Guinea fowl is easy to cook, especially if there is no extra fat added. Using coriander with basil shocks some of my Italian friends, but even they’ve been converted; the combination really works.” – Olia Hercules

Easy
September 2017

Test kitchen approved

Serves 4
Hands-on time 50 min

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 440kcals
Fat: 27.2g (5.3g saturated)
Protein: 40.4g
Carbohydrates: 7.2g (5.7g sugars)
Fibre: 2.4g
Salt: 0.6g

Save recipe

Save

Save recipe Print

Rate

Ingredients

2-4 tbsp vegetable oil
1 free-range guinea fowl  (about 1kg; or use pheasant  or a small chicken), jointed
 1 onion, sliced
½ tbsp ground blue fenugreek
 3 large ripe tomatoes, chopped
 3 garlic cloves, 2 finely chopped,  1 crushed
 Small bunch fresh coriander, leaves and stalks finely chopped
 ½ bunch fresh purple (or  green) basil, chopped, plus  extra to serve
 A few fresh dill fronds to serve

Cook Mode Sticky screen? No thanks! Tap to prevent your screen from going off while cooking.

Method

Heat 2 tbsp of the oil in a large cast-iron pan with a tight-fitting lid and brown the guinea fowl pieces on all sides for about 5 minutes until golden. Remove the guinea fowl (don’t wash out the pan) and set aside. Add a little more oil if the pan is dry, then add the onion. Cook over a low heat for about 5-10 minutes until the onion starts to soften  and colour gently. Add the blue fenugreek and cook for another  5 minutes.
Return the guinea fowl pieces to the pan with the tomatoes and chopped garlic, adding 30ml cold water if it’s dry. Cover with the lid and cook over a low heat for about 30 minutes. Take off the lid, remove the guinea fowl pieces to a plate (keep warm) and raise the heat  a little bit to reduce and concentrate the sauce. Cook, stirring, until it  has a saucy consistency, then  add the coriander and basil and  the crushed garlic. Cook for  a minute longer, turn off the  heat and return the guinea fowl pieces to the pan to warm through. Sprinkle with some basil and dill, then serve with a simple grain  (such as spelt or farro) or bread.

Recipe from September 2017 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 440kcals
Fat: 27.2g (5.3g saturated)
Protein: 40.4g
Carbohydrates: 7.2g (5.7g sugars)
Fibre: 2.4g
Salt: 0.6g

delicious. tips

Ground blue fenugreek (utzkho-suneli in Georgian), is quite different from ordinary fenugreek. It’s available online at caucasians.co.uk. If you can’t find any, substitute crushed coriander or fennel seeds instead.