Poul Ak Nwa (Chicken With Cashews)

Step 1

Blend or process red bell pepper, green bell pepper, onion, scallions, parsley, garlic, vinegar, oil, lime juice, and thyme in a blender or food processor until smooth (you will have about 3 cups).Do ahead: Epis can be made 2 weeks ahead. Transfer to an airtight container and chill, or pour into ice cube trays and freeze up to 3 months.

Step 2

Bring cashews and 3 cups water to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat to low, cover pan, and simmer until a cashew crumbles but doesn’t disintegrate when pressed between your fingers, 45–60 minutes. Drain cashews and set aside.Mix chicken, garlic, cloves, lime juice, parsley, thyme, a copious amount of black pepper, 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ¼ cup epis in a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot until chicken is coated. Nestle chile in the center of pot, cover, and set over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until chicken is nearly cooked through and a lot of juices have cooked out, about 30 minutes. Transfer chicken mixture to a medium bowl, scraping any remaining seasonings out of pot with a heatproof rubber spatula.

Step 3

Pour oil into same pot and increase heat to medium-high. Using tongs, return chicken to pot, leaving juices and chile behind in bowl. Cook chicken, turning occasionally, until browned all over, 5–10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add tomato paste and cook, stirring often and adding 1 Tbsp. chicken juice if starting to burn, until paste is slightly darkened in color, about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook, stirring often, until starting to soften, about 4 minutes.

Step 4

Add cashews, reserved chile, and remaining reserved chicken juices to pot (make sure to keep chile intact; an open chile will add a lot of heat), then pour ½ cup water into bowl and swish around to pick up any seasonings left behind. Pour water mixture into pot. Bring chicken mixture to a simmer, cover pot, and cook until chicken meat is falling off the bone, about 20 minutes. Stir in onion and bell pepper, re-cover pot, and cook until vegetables are softened but still retain some bite, 5–10 minutes. Remove chile from pot; discard. Taste poul ak nwa and season with more salt and pepper if needed.

Step 5

To serve, divide rice among shallow bowls and ladle poul ak nwa over.Do ahead: Poul ak nwa can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Reheat over medium-low before serving.