Ivory Coast | Stew

Kedjenou

Name: Kedjenou
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 80 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Ivory Coast, West Africa
Ingredients: 1½ kg chicken pieces, bone-in; 4 medium tomatoes, quartered; 2 medium onions, quartered; 1 medium eggplant, cubed; 3 cloves garlic, crushed; 1 thumb fresh ginger, sliced; 2 whole bay leaves; 1 whole scotch bonnet pepper, whole; salt, to taste; black pepper, to taste

A slow-cooked chicken stew made without any added water — the chicken and vegetables steam in their own juices with aromatic herbs and spices.

Country

Ivory Coast

Region

West Africa

Time

80 min

Serves

Level

medium

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01 / Get ready

Everything you need

Tap each ingredient as you gather it. Illustrations are visual guides; follow the ingredient names and quantities.

Servings 6

Scale the dish before you shop, then use the checklist while you cook.

Jump to method My cookbook

Ingredients

For 6 servings

Stew

A few kitchen essentials

Suggested from the recipe method. Use equivalent equipment you have.

Lidded pot

Kitchen foil

02 / Let’s cook

One step at a time

Keep the rhythm calm, watch the texture, and adjust seasoning at the end.

Back to Ivory Coast

5 steps 20 min prep 60 min cook (check method) 80 min total medium

Layer the pot

Place chicken in a heavy pot or Dutch oven. Add tomatoes, onions, eggplant, garlic, ginger, bay leaves, and whole scotch bonnet. Season with salt and pepper.

Kitchen noteDo not add any water — this is the key to kedjenou.

Seal and cook

Cover the pot tightly with foil and then the lid to create a perfect seal. Cook on the lowest heat possible for 45 minutes.

Kitchen noteDo not open the lid during cooking — shake the pot occasionally instead.

Slow cook 45:00

Check doneness

After 45 minutes, carefully open the lid. The chicken should be falling off the bone in a rich, concentrated broth of its own juices.

Simmer if needed

If the chicken needs more time, reseal and cook another 15 minutes. The sauce should be thick and deeply flavoured.

Extra simmer 15:00

Serve

Serve hot with attiéké or fluffy white rice. The concentrated sauce is incredibly flavourful.

Every household has small variations. Start here, then adjust seasoning, heat, and serving sides to your kitchen.

Cooking notes, photos & serving ideas

Recipe context

More about this dish

Serving ideas, regional context, and cooking cues for when you want more detail.

When to cook it

Best for Family meals and gatherings. Plan on a medium cook. Allow about 80 minutes total.

What to serve alongside it

Attiéké or white rice

Regional lane

Akan and Baoule slow table. Sealed-pot chicken and guinea fowl dishes where steam and patience make the sauce.

Chef watch-outs

Stopping the base before the pepper, onion, or spice edge has mellowed.
Thinning the pot before the body of the soup or stew has developed.
Opening the pot too often or adding water before the ingredients release their own juices.

How you know it is ready

The sauce should coat the spoon and taste rounded, not watery or raw.
The pot should smell concentrated and steamy, with vegetables collapsed into their own sauce.
The aroma should smell rounded rather than raw or sharp.

Pantry lane

attieke, plantain, palm oil, scotch bonnet, eggplant

Recipe photos

See the dish before you cook

Take a closer look at the dish and its serving ideas.

Kedjenou recipe from Ivory Coast — Kedjenou finished dish

Chef board

Build the table around Kedjenou

Attiéké or white rice

Best route from here

Akan and Baoule slow table

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