I’ve been experimenting a lot with my cooking. As Jacob often goes climbing on certain nights, we only have thirty minutes to cook dinner.
This easy recipe for savory tacos draws inspiration from both Tex-Mex as well as Surinamese cuisine. It’s the perfect mix of savory and spicy for anyone looking for something different. The best part: these tacos are done in thirty minutes flat.
In case you don’t know about Suriname, it’s a country in South America that had been colonized by the Dutch. Surinamese food is a distinctive mix of complex flavors with roots in Indonesian, African, Indian, and Chinese cuisine. (I’ve recently become obsessed with Surinamese food due to the complex flavors.) You can click here to read more about Surinamese food and history.
The recipe from the chicken is inspired by the filled sopropo recipe (a bitter gourd) that I found thanks to Francesca Kookt . I loved how the chicken was transformed instantly into a savory and spicy chicken that reminded me of a Tex-Mex recipe. (Recipe at the bottom!)
My husband does not eat beef, so we decided to see what would happen if we combined this Surinamese-style chicken with guacamole, hot sauce, and tortillas to make this recipe Tex-Mex inspired. The “Surinamese guacos” (as my husband calls them) were a hit ready in just thirty minutes.
If you think that you’ve tried every easy taco recipe out there, try this one out and let me know what you think! If you’re unable to find the laos (Thai ginger; Galangal) that is often found as a powder in the Netherlands, you can substitute in grated ginger. An Asian supermarket near you may carry this as well as ketjap manis.
In case you’re not familiar with ketjap manis, it’s a sweeter soy sauce with a more savory flavor and a molasses aftertaste. It’s a popular ingredient in Indonesian cooking and you’ll see why we enjoy cooking with it.
We chose to add hot sauce to our final tacos, but if you’re not a fan of spiciness, you can keep these Surinamese-inspired tacos as savory by omitting the hot sauce and the chili powder.
We made our guacamole at home using a recipe very similar to this one. If you’re lucky enough to be able to buy good guacamole (unlike us), you can simply pick it up at the store.
Let me know what you think of this easy taco recipe!
Easy Surinamese-inspired Savory Chicken Tacos
An international Surinamese-inspired chicken taco recipe that can be made in just 30 minutes! These savory chicken tacos are perfect for an easy family dinner!
Ingredients
Spices for Chicken
- 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
- 3 tablespoons of Ketjap Manis (Sweet soy sauce)
- Two cubes of Chicken Bouillon Cubes ground up
- 1 teaspoon of Chili Powder (Optional)
- 1 teaspoon of Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of Black Pepper
- 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
Other ingredients
- Onions (3 bulbs diced)
- Ground Chicken (400-500 grams)
- Tortillas
- Guacamole (follow your favorite recipe)
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
- Green Pepper
- Hot sauce (optional; I recommend Choula)
- Cilantro
Instructions
- Place the diced onions into a large pan with the olive oil. Let onions cook for a few minutes until they turn clear.
- Put ground chicken into pan and lower the heat to medium heat.
- Spice chicken with soy sauce, Ketjap mani, cinnamon, pepper, chili, ground up bouillon cubes (preferably Maggi), and ginger. Mix with wooden spoon to distribute the spices.
- Let chicken simmer for 20 minutes with stirring occasionally.
- While the chicken simmers, heat tortilla over another warm pan.
- Prepare guacamole (or purchase store bought!)
- Cut pepper into slices or cubes depending on preference
- Combine guacamole, tortilla, chicken, and hot sauce (optional).
- Garnish with cilantro. Bon appetit!
Notes
This recipe was inspired by the Surinamese chicken made from this filled Sopropo recipe.
