Weeknight Arabic Chicken Biryani
This Arabic biryani recipe is unique to my family's region of Iraq and is how my mom made it, with chicken, and flavoured heavily with her mix of baharat/seasoning. It's made with long grain basmati rice, cubes of potatoes, peas, almonds and raisons. Truly a feast with so much texture!
Ingredients
For the potatoes:
- 3 yellow potatoes, large, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch or 2 cm
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the Chicken:
- 680 g boneless chicken thighs, cut into 3/4-inch or 2 cm cubes
- 1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
For the Rice:
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 cups basmati rice, washed and drained
- 3 cups water
- 1 1/2 cups frozen green peas
For the Baharat Spice Blend:
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon curry powder
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
For Garnishing and Serving:
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
- 1 cup raisins, optional
Instructions
For the Potatoes
- Preheat the oven to 450F and position a rack on the bottom. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Add the potatoes to the sheet pan and toss with the oil and salt. Smooth the cubes into a single layer and bake for 25 to 30 minutes on the bottom rack, until golden and soft, or air fry at 380F for 25 minutes until golden.
For the Chicken
- Add the chicken to a large bowl with the salt, pepper, cardamom, cinnamon and cloves. Mix well to thoroughly coat the chicken.
- In a large, deep skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, working in batches to avoid overcrowding, for a few minutes, until seared on both sides; it does not need to cook through. Transfer to a plate.
For the Rice
- In the same skillet the chicken was cooked in, heat the 3 tablespoons oil over medium heat. Add the salt and turmeric, mix, and then add the rice and water. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the chicken back into the skillet over the rice and sprinkle the frozen peas on top. Cover the skillet with a tight-fitting lid, reduce the heat to low, and let cook for 20 minutes, undisturbed.
For the Baharat Spice Blend
- In a small bowl, mix together all the spice blend ingredients.
To Make the Garnish and to Serve
- In a small skillet, heat the oil over low heat, then add the almonds and toast for 2 to 3 minutes until golden, stirring continuously. Transfer to a small bowl. Add the raisins (if using) to the skillet and heat them through, about 30 seconds.
- After the biryani has cooked for 20 minutes, remove the lid and gently fluff the rice with a fork or wooden spoon. Sprinkle the baharat spice blend over the rice and mix gently. Cover and let the rice steam for 10 minutes with the heat off.
- Spoon the biryani into a large serving tray and add the potatoes on top along with half of the toasted almonds and raisins (if using). Stir gently until everything is combined.
- Garnish with the remaining toasted almonds and raisins (if using).
Notes
- Serve the Arabic Biryani with plain yogurt and a simple salad for a complete meal.
- You can pan fry the potatoes instead of baking as well, but I like to bake or air fry because I can work on the other components while they bake.
- When toasting the almonds, make sure you stir continuously because they tend to burn quickly.
Serving: 1Serving, Calories: 861kcal, Carbohydrates: 96g, Protein: 30g, Fat: 41g, Saturated Fat: 8g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Monounsaturated Fat: 23g, Trans Fat: 0.1g, Cholesterol: 111mg, Sodium: 1470mg, Potassium: 1136mg, Fiber: 9g, Sugar: 3g, Vitamin A: 379IU, Vitamin C: 37mg, Calcium: 98mg, Iron: 4mg
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