Trinidad Chicken Roti- An incredible chicken meal that would excite your taste buds. Rich in spices, chickpeas and potatoes – So easy to make and comes together quickly.
I am not going to deny that I somewhat have a love affair with Caribbean food. You name it, Jamaican curry chicken, Coconut buns/Cakes, Caribbean potato salad, salt fish fritters, not to mention Jerk Chicken, there is no denying it.
Can you believe I love Jerk Chicken so much that I have created three versions of it- Oven, Slow cooker and grilled? I could seriously live off all these tantalizing meals for the rest of my life. However, it would not be complete without throwing this Chicken Roti into the mix.
Out of all the Caribbean meals I have tried and cooked, this Roti Chicken is by far my favorite to date.
If you truly love Caribbean food then this is a must make! And if you don’t, you still need to make it. Think healthy butter chicken, spiced up, without the copious amount of butter. Did I get you excited?
Oh Chicken Roti, How do I love thee? I wish I was eloquent enough, as a poet, to pay homage to you, but when it comes to chicken roti my mouth is full …with chunks of spicy goodness….You need to experience the spontaneous joy that this dish elicits. Hubby can’t fathom my obsession with Caribbean food. But this orgasmic chicken made him fall head over heals. 
He pretty much ate the whole thing in one sitting and was at a loss for words. The only thing that came out of his mouth was, “this is the best meal I have eaten in six months”. Really? Since then it is now part of our meal rotation. Give it a try!
I usually add hot sauce and paprika (I love paprika) – to give it a slightly red color. I did not include this in the spice mix – only the heat seekers should go ahead with this procedure.
You may serve with roti , rice or paratha featured here
Enjoy!
Trinidad Chicken Roti- An incredible chicken meal that would excite your taste buds. Rich in spices, chickpeas and potato-So easy to make and comes together quickly.
- 2 1/2 -3 pounds chicken skinned thighs cut in bite-sized pieces
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon curry powder
- ½ teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
- ½ cup canola oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 2 Teaspoons minced garlic
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh or dried thyme
- 1- teaspoon cumin spice
- 1 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 2-3 tablespoon curry powder
- 1- teaspoon ground nutmeg spice
- 1 can of chickpeas drained
- 1- tablespoon bouillon chicken powder
- 2 cups of cubed potatoes
- ½-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional
- 1- teaspoon white pepper.
- 3-4 cups chicken broth/water
- Salt to taste
- Place chicken in a large bowl or sauce pan
- then add salt, garlic, thyme, white pepper and curry powder
- Mix chicken with a spoon or with hands until they are well coated, set aside in the fridge and marinate for 30 minutes or overnight.
- When ready to cook, heat up large sauce-pan with oil, and add onions, garlic, thyme, cumin spice, all spice, smoked paprika, nutmeg and curry powder, stir occasionally for about 2-3 minutes until onions is translucent.
- Then add chicken, stir and sauté for about 2-3 more minutes. Add chicken stock if necessary to prevent any burns
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Next add chickpeas, chicken bouillon, potatoes, cayenne ,white pepper, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil and let it simmer until sauce thickens, it might take about 20-30 minutes.
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Adjust for salt, pepper and thickness with more more broth.
Making this now. Smells so good. Going to put over rice instead.
Sounds delicious :)!!
I only discovered rotis about a year ago, but my wife was born and raised here in South Africa, where they are quite common. Finding allspice was a bit of a mission but we managed to get some whole berries we could grind. We were both thrilled with how this recipe turned out. It’s pungent, spicy, and delicious. Exactly what we were craving and as good as any roti we’ve had. We’ll definitely make this again!
Fantastic!! I am glad you went to the trouble of finding allspice. It really does make this dish extra special. Thank you for the feedback, Dave!
It’s rare that I find a recipe that pleases the whole family (all with very different palates) but this one is a winner! Great balance of flavours. I’m only familiar with Malaysian chicken roti (Caribbean cuisine is rare in New Zealand) but this recipe is equally delicious.
You must eat it with traditional roti bread!
That’s a win in my book. Thanks for letting us us.
It was delicious – My husband loved it! – but it turned out more curry- coloured than the lovely reddish colour in your photos. Just wondered – what you added to get that darker colour?
Wanted to add a huge thank you for this recipe… it is definitely a keeper and my husband asked if it could go on regular meal rotation! (He said like -every other day! lol. We wrapped it up in chickpea Roti- so tasty- and my kitchen smelled just heavenly!
Wow, wrapped in chickpea Roti, that must have been Delicious!!! No wonder your husband has taken a liking to this dish :). Thank you for stopping by, Maggie.
Awesome!! I am so glad you loved it, Maggie. As for the reddish color, it is probably the paprika :).
Awesome! I was hesitant to believe this was the real deal. 10 years ago I had Roti in Barbados and never had it again but always remembered it and looked for it. Couple weeks ago I was craving that taste I remembered so well and came across this. Wow. Just wow. Super authentic from what I can tell. Making again tomorrow. Going into the dinner rotation. Ate wrapped in roti we bought from the local Bazaar. Thanks so much!
Fantastic! I am so glad you loved this recipe, Jim :). Thank you so much for taking the time to leave this feedback.
Love this recipe, it turned out soooooo flavorful and soooooo good! My first time trying roti and the smell while it was cooking was fantastic. Delicious, thank you for sharing! I added a habanero pepper in the step with the onions to kick up the heat. Served over rice…. will keep this recipe in the dinner rotation for sure. ♥️ all of your recipes I’ve tried so far… thanks again!
Awesome!!! I am thrilled this was a hit with you, Trina! Thanks for the feedback!
Amazing! I don’t have access to the west Indian food in TO, because I don’t live there anymore. But this recipe is the real deal! A tad too much oil for my taste, but the spice profile is perfect!
Thanks for the feedback!
Fantastic recipe, its my new favorite meal.
I make it for a meal and before the afternoon is out I have to hide a bowl or Ill not have any for my dinner.
Thank you very much.
Ron
I followed your recipe to the letter but some how its a bit thin, is there a way to thicken it up a little bit? I have been simmering it for 35 minutes to thicken it but its not working for me.
Thanks
Ron
Hi Ron. Just keep simmering for a few more minutes and it will thicken. Thanks for stopping by!
I find if that happens just mash some of the potatoe and chickpea and its helps thicken it up.
This is absolutely delicious! Thank you so much!
My friends and family will literally place orders with me when they know I’ll be making this curry and buss up shut. It is no joke, it is that good! Thank you so much for sharing 🙂
You are such a good person to take their orders haha! This makes me very happy Celine, thank you for sharing 🙂
I’m Guyanese so I usually cook our version of curry but I decided to try this one and it was amazing. I am blown away by all the flavors! I halved the recipe for fewer people, but I used the whole can of chick peas because I didn’t want anything to waste. I also only used 2 tbsp of oil because when I usually make curry that’s enough. After about 25 mins when the potatoes were soft and the chicken was cooked, I removed the solid ingredients to a serving dish and turned the heat up on the stove to reduce and thicken the liquid. It came out perfect! I love trying your recipes and experiencing different versions of familiar dishes.
I made this, along with the buss up shut, yesterday and it was fantastic! I’ve lived in Trinidad and Guyana and have struggled to find any chicken and roti recipe that tastes authentic to the West Indies. This is the real deal! It was soo good and everyone who tried it loved it! So thank you for posting this 🙂
Thank you Jason! I’m so glad you enjoyed 🙂
The best roti I’ve ever had hands down!
This was amazing! Whole family enjoyed. First time visiting your site but will for sure be long back for more
Can I use regular paprika instead of smoked? I love your recipes I have made many of your recipes and they are also great.
Yes, you can. Enjoy!
How can I make this vegetarian? Have some Jamaican friends who don’t eat pork and beef and chicken. What’s a good replacement to make this vegetarian and still taste just as good? I used your recipe and it’s phenomenal. I’d love to share it with my friends in the future
Hi Tomas. I haven’t tried the vegan version for this yet, however, I’ve read online how others use potatoes and chickpeas to make it vegan. Hope this helps.
When you make this with the buss up shut, do you fill with chicken, then fold/wrap, and then you’re done? Is there anything else you do for the wrap version of this?
Oh my goodness. Just made your chicken roti and it was the best i have ever tasted – not saying that because I made it but saying that because they was the tastiest that I have ever had. The recipe was perfect. I even added some hot sauce to it.
I love this recipe. I’ve tweaked a little each time I make it, yet the core recipe is the real deal. Wonderful .
I made this, along with your buss up shuh paratha, for dinner last night and it was amazing! Totally made me think of all the times I was in Barbados. I will definitely be making this again and again and again.