rowanf | Chicken & Shrimp stew

Here is the recipe Rayna made for Yemanja the other night. It is from a Brazilian cookbook Rayna's co-worker lent her, name unknown. There are lots of Xinxim recipes to be found on the web too.

Xinxim
(Chicken & Shrimp stew)

2 3-1/2 lb chickens, backbones and wing tips removed, cut into 8 pieces
salt & pepper to taste
2 limes, halved
1 lb medium fresh shrimp, peeled, tails intact & deveined
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2-3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
2 medium onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3 large tomatoes, chopped
2 cup chicken stock
4 malagueta peppers or 1 small hot chili pepper, chopped
1/4 cup roasted peanuts
1/4 cup roasted cashews
1/2 cup dried shrimp
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 Tbsp dende oil (palm oil)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup coconut milk, unsweetened

Wash and pat try the chicken pieces and season with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, toss the chicken pieces with the juice of one lime and set aside for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile in a medium bowl, season the shrimp with salt and pepper and the juice of half a lime and set aside for 15 minutes.
Heat 2 Tbsp of vegetable oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the shrimp and sautee briefly, until they are pink, about two minutes. Remove and reserve.
Add half the remaining vegetable oil to the pan. When the pan is hot, add the chicken in batches, skin side down, and brown until golden, adding more oil as needed. Repeat until all the chicken is well browned and reserve.
Drain the oil, add 2 tbsp of olive oil to the pan, and sautee the onions and garlic until soft and translucent, about five minutes. Add the green pepper and cook another vie minutes. Add the tomatoes and stock, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and add chicken. Cover and cook for 35 minutes, or until chicken is tender and cooked through, stirring from time to time so the chicken does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
Mix the ground cashews and peanuts with the ground dried shrimp.
Remove the chicken from the pan and whisk in the ground dried shrimp and nut mixture, ginger and salt & pepper. Bring to a simmer, add 1 Tbsp dende oil, then return the chicken to the pan, and add the shrimp. Add the cilantro, bring to a simmer and cook about five minutes, or until hot. Squeeze the juice of the remaining lime half over the Xinxim, add the remaining dende oil and coconut milk, and cook until heated through about three minutes.
Place the Xinxim in a heated serving bowl and serve with boiled white rice, farofa (seasoning powder), vatapa (a very similar fish stew) and pepper sauce.

[This last line makes no sense to me, the parentheses are mine. Plus, this recipe is way too complicated. And I would use 4-5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts since I don't like chicken skin. If I made it at all given the cilantro. *grin*]