TWO Oban primary school pupils have cooked up a Commonwealth culinary delight to win bronze medals in a national competition.

Ten-year-old twins Asher and Zeph Petit, who are in Primary Seven at Park Primary School in Oban, entered the Culinary School Games – a competition involving school pupils from all over Scotland and run in conjunction with Game On Scotland, the official education programme of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.

Pupils had to enter their own Commonwealth-themed recipe, so Asher and Zeph cooked up Caribbean Chicken with rice, peas and dumplings – a dish from Jamaica.

Their efforts were rewarded with a Culinary Games bronze medal, presented to them at Park Primary School on Friday 4th April.

Argyll and Bute Council’s Policy Lead for Education, Councillor Aileen Morton, said: “It’s wonderful to see our pupils embracing the spirit of the Commonwealth Games in lots of different and exciting ways. Asher and Zeph have done really well to win a bronze medal in a national competition and their Caribbean Chicken looks absolutely delicious – well done!”

You can find out more about the Culinary Games at www.scottishschoolmeals.co.uk

Try Asher and Zeph’s recipe for yourself:

Caribbean Chicken with Rice, Peas and Dumplings

Ingredients

• 12 skinless and boneless chicken thighs
• Lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon all purpose seasoning
• 2 teaspoons chicken seasoning
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 red chilli, chopped
• 5 sprigs thyme
• 300ml sunflower oil
• 2 plum tomatoes from a tin, chopped

For the rice and peas

• 350g basmati rice, rinsed
• 150g dried red kidney beans, soaked overnight
• 75g creamed coconut, cut into chunks
• Salt, to taste

1. For the rice and peas, place the rice and kidney beans in a saucepan and fill the pan two-thirds full with water. Bring to the boil then add the coconut and stir briefly. Boil for another five minutes then turn off the heat and cover the pan with foil and a lid. Leave without lifting the lid for 30 minutes.
2. Start by washing the chicken. This is done by placing chicken in a large bowl and covering with cold water. Add some lemon juice and give it a good swirl for a couple of minutes, then drain off the chicken by placing it in a colander. Once the excess water has drained, put the chicken back in the bowl.
3. Add the dried ingredients to the bowl and rub into the chicken by hand. Add the garlic, onion, chilli and thyme and mix once more. Cover and leave in the fridge for at least one hour.
4. Heat the oil in a wok until very hot. Remove the chicken from the bowl, leaving the thyme, chilli, garlic and onion behind. Brown the chicken in batches then pass the oil through a sieve to use later.
5. Put the pan back on the heat and add approximately three tablespoons of the sieved oil. Return the chicken to the pan with the onion, garlic, chilli, thyme and chopped tomatoes. Cover with boiling water and simmer for 15 minutes.
6. Turn down the heat and simmer for one hour until the liquid has reduced. Serve with the rice and peas.

For the dumplings

Ingredients
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup cold water
1 tablespoon coconut oil (other vegetable oils or butter may be substituted)

Combine flour and baking power in a bowl. Mix vegetable oil into flour and baking powder mixture. Add water. Knead dough until it is a tight mass. Divide into 12 roughly equal pieces. Knead each piece into a ball. Flatten, fry in hot oil, that is at least half the height of the dough balls, until golden brown.