THREE DUBAI CHEFS
SHARE THEIR FAVOURITE EID AL FITR RECIPES
RECIPE 1: Haya Bishouty, Haya’s Kitchen
Dish: Chicken Musakhan (National dish of Palestine) Serving size: 4 people Preparation time: 90 minutes
Ingredients
Chicken stock:
1 chicken, cut into 4 pieces with skin and bone
4 bay leaves
5 whole cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
1 onion, quartered
4 whole cloves
1 tsp salt
2 cups water
Chicken rub:
1 ¾ tsp salt
½ tbsp ground allspice ½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp ground black pepper ½ tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp Palestinian sumac ¼ cup water
¼ cup Palestinian olive oil
Onions:
750 gms chopped onions 3/4 cup Palestinian olive oil ½ tsp ground black pepper ½ tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1 ½ cup chicken broth
4 tbsp Palestinian sumac
To assemble:
2 Palestinian taboon bread, quartered Fried almonds and pine nuts
Method
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 180℃. Step 2: Place the chicken into a deep pot. Add boiling water and the chicken stock ingredients, and boil for 15 minutes with the lid on – make sure the chicken is covered in water. Skim off the surface of the liquid.
Step 3: Take the chicken out of the pot, place in an oven proof tray and add the spice rub onto the chicken – spread it evenly. Add the water and oil and place in the oven for 45 minutes.
Step 4: Meanwhile, place the onions in a large pot. Add the oil and spices, and cook the onions for about 20 minutes on a medium heat. Keep stirring the onions to make sure they don’t stick at the bottom of the pot. Then add the sumac and chicken broth and continue to cook for another 20 minutes – until the onions are tender and the liquid has reduced by a quarter.
Step 5: Fry the almonds and pine nuts in olive oil until golden.
Step 6: To assemble, you’ll need to:
Take the taboon bread, dip it fully into the onion pot to allow it to be coated on both sides. Place the bread on a round baking tray. Add a layer of onions on top of the bread and then sprinkle some fresh sumac. Keep layering until all the bread is finished. Add the chicken on top as the last layer and pop the tray in the oven on broil for about 10 minutes. Top with the fried nuts and serve with plain yoghurt.
“GROWING UP, MUSAKHAN WAS A DISH THAT BROUGHT MY WHOLE FAMILY TOGETHER”