Machbous ala Dajaj

So this week, I made Machbous ala Dajaj, which is the national dish of Bahrain. To make this portable for a cookout, I skewered the chicken pieces and left behind the broth. Then we mixed the broth with some rice later.

To be honest, this was probably a mistake because the chicken got a bit dry. Anyways, if you want a healthy chicken meal with some middle eastern spices, this is the dish for you. That said, this does take a while to make.

Ingredients
2 large onions chopped finely
2 tbsp. ghee (I--and probably you--used butter)
1 tbsp. baharat powder (most stores will have some version of baharat, but see the components below)
1 tsp. turmeric powder
3 lbs. of skinless, boneless chicken
3 green chillies, slit down the middle
6 cloves garlic, sliced finely
1 1″ piece of ginger, sliced finely
2 chopped tomatoes
3 cloves
1/2 tsp. loomi (dried lime), or I strip lemon rind
2 pieces cinnamon
6 cardamom pods
3 tsp. salt
2.5 cups water
2 cups basmati rice (washed, soaked for 5 minutes, them drained)
2 tbsp. chopped green coriander leaves
2 tbsp. chopped parsley (optional)

Baharat powder
1/2 cup black peppercorns
1/4 cup coriander seeds
1/4 cup cinnamon sticks
1/4 cup cloves
1/3 cup cumin seeds
1/4 cup nutmeg powder
1/2 cup paprika powder

Method:

• Start cooking your rice
• In a deep, heavy pan, gently fry chopped onions in ghee (or butter) until they begin to brown.

• Add sliced garlic, ginger, and green chillies

• Stir in the baharat powder & turmeric powder, and cook for 2 minutes

• Add chicken pieces and stir into fried ingredients

• Add tomatoes, cloves, loomi, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods & salt, stirring well to combine.

• Add water, cover and simmer over gentle heat for 45 minutes.

• Stir into mixture, the drained rice.

• Add herbs and bring to a low simmer

• Cover, bring to boil, then immediately lower heat and simmer gently for a further 20 minutes

• Remove from heat and leave aside for 10 – 15 minutes

The end result looks like this (Again, I removed the chicken from the broth, which I wouldn't recommend):

Next up is Bangladesh....and it looks like it's going to be fish wrapped in banana leaves...that is, if I can find banana leaves in Baltimore.

Editor's note: For those who know that I lived at Chez Guilford, the era has officially come to a close. This was the final dish cooked at the old place. So going forward, you'll get to see the new place, with new, different-colored granite counters for a back drop. Fun!

Gorby says bye!