Spiced Arabic Chicken and Rice
Ingredients
- 4 cups basmati rice
- 2 kg whole chicken
- 4 tablespoons ghee
- 4 tablespoons corn oil
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 6 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon whole black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon whole cloves
- 10 cardamom pods
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 2 dried limes
- 2 large chopped onions
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 large peeled and chopped tomatoes
- 1/2 cup dried chickpeas
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed chili
- 2 green chili peppers
Garnish
- fried almonds
Preparation
Wash the rice several times and soak it in water until use.
In a deep dish, place the chicken, sprinkle a little salt, pepper, and mixed spices, and rub the chicken with your fingertips so that it absorbs the spices.
In a large thick-bottomed pot, put the ghee and oil, place the pot on medium heat to melt the ghee.
Add cinnamon, bay leaves, pepper, cloves, cardamom, and dried lime, stir the whole spices for a minute or two until their aroma rises and they roast.
Place the chicken on the spices in the pot and stir once or twice only so that the chicken absorbs the aroma of the spices.
Add onion, tomato paste, chopped tomato, chickpeas, salt, pepper, chili, and green pepper, add 8 cups of water and cover the pot, let the chicken cook on medium heat for an hour or until fully cooked.
Remove the chicken from the broth and place it on a metal rack over a baking tray, place in the oven under the broiler to brown and turn golden.
Drain the rice and add it to the broth in the pot, let the rice cook on high heat until it absorbs most of the broth and holes form on the surface, cover the pot, reduce the heat to very low, and let the rice cook for 20 minutes or until fully cooked.
Fluff the rice with a fork then pour it into a large serving dish, place the browned chicken on the rice and garnish with fried almonds, serve immediately.
