Tender chicken pieces cooked with aromatic basmati rice, dried limes, and baharat spice blend, topped with golden fried onions and raisins. This Kuwaiti chicken variation of the national dish is a weekday family favorite.
Ingredients
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces
2 cups basmati rice, soaked 30 min
3 onions, 2 sliced and 1 diced
3 tbsp baharat spice blend
1 tsp turmeric
2 dried limes (loomi)
2 tomatoes, grated
2 tbsp tomato paste
3 tbsp oil
2 tbsp raisins
Salt
4 cups chicken broth
Fresh cilantro
Instructions
1Brown chicken pieces in oil over high heat until golden on all sides. Remove and set aside.
2Fry sliced onions in the same pot until deeply caramelized. Remove half for garnish. Add diced onion and cook until soft.
3Stir in baharat, turmeric, grated tomatoes, and tomato paste. Cook for 3 minutes until the spice paste is fragrant.
4Return chicken to the pot, add dried limes and broth. Simmer covered for 25 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
5Remove chicken. Add soaked, drained rice to the broth. Cover tightly and cook on low for 18 minutes until rice is fluffy.
6Arrange rice on a platter with chicken on top. Garnish with fried onions, raisins, and fresh cilantro.
Did You Know?
In Kuwait, debating whether machboos dajaj or machboos laham is superior can spark friendly family arguments that last for generations.