How To Make Belizean Chimole or Black Dinna

December 10, 2024
by Larry Waight +

Some call it a soup. Others call it a stew. And the vast number of recipes Belizean chefs employ to fashion this tasty, meat-filled dish could give you pause! The secret ingredient is recado, a black spice that gives the dish its name.

Whether you call it Belizean Chimole or Black Dinna, this festival for the palate and soul is a meat-lovers dream and once you’re hooked, only a different recipe for this dish originated by Mestizo cooks will do. Get out your pots and your spices. Your taste buds are about to embark on a tasty adventure.

Ingredients
Black recado spice (1/4-cup or up to 5 Tbsp)
1 chicken (cut up)
1 pound ground pork
6 hard boiled eggs
1 medium diced or sliced raw onion
2 diced tomatoes
3-4 mashed garlic cloves
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
½ tsp. cumin leaves
2 chicken bouillon cubes
3 cubed potatoes
Salt and pepper
Cooking oil
Corn tortillas
1 diced green pepper (optional)
Cornstarch (optional)

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10 Cooking steps
1. Salt and pepper the chicken pieces and brown them in a large pot using a small amount of cooking oil.
2. Add enough water to cover the chicken.
3. Add onions, garlic, potatoes, and chicken bouillon to the chicken mix.
4. Simmer the chicken mixture for 30 minutes.
5. Hard boil the eggs and remove the shells.
6. Saute the ground pork in a small amount of cooking oil.
7. Add the cooked pork, spices, tomatoes, and veggies to the soup.
8. Mix recado with enough water to dissolve it and add it to the pot.
9. Add a little cornstarch if you prefer a thicker soup.
10. Serve with corn tortillas and enjoy!

A word on preparation
Some Belize cooks plop the hardboiled eggs directly into the soup mix while others serve them as a side with the tortillas. We found a few cooks who chop up the eggs before they’re added to the mix. Additionally, cooks take pride in adding their own ingredients and spices over time as they develop their unique recipes.

As a result, you could find recipes that stipulate both red and black recado as well as those that include veggies like acorn squash to the mix. They’re all appropriate and add to both the taste and the cooking lure of a Belize dish with a big fan club that has no equal. What will you add to make this signature dish your own?