Palestinian Chicken Musakhan Recipe
Musakhan is a very popular dish in Palestine, it is also said to be the national dish! It's a dish that you eat with your hands and with your friends together! Served from one pot or plate, for everyone to then tear off some bread and spoon on the chicken and topping for themselves.
Traditionally, musakhan was made around the olive oil pressing season in October or November to celebrate the freshly pressed olive oil. The bread would be cooked in a hot clay oven lined with smooth round stones, to create small craters in the bread in which the chicken meat juices, onion, and olive oil all happily pool. Musakhan is cooked year-round, nowadays, layered with store-bought flat bread, and is a dish to suit all occasions and comforting enough to be the perfect weeknight supper as it is, but also special enough to stand alongside other dishes at a feast. It laced heavily with spices that will transport you to the region!
Palestinian Chicken Musakhan Recipe
Ingredients
1 chicken cut into 4 pieces or 1kg chicken breasts/thighs
½ cup/120ml olive oil, plus 2 or 3 tbsp
1 tbsp ground Rajasthan cumin
3 tbsp Anatolian sumac
½ tsp ground Sumatra cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
1 tsp Ottoman Kofte Spice
¼ cup/30g pine nuts
3 large red onions, thinly sliced
4 flat breads, any kind of Middle Eastern bread will work
¼ cup/5g parsley leaves, roughly chopped
1¼ cups/300g Greek yogurt
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Cooking Directions
Preheat the oven to 425°F on roast setting. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, and line a bowl with paper towels.
Place the chicken in a large mixing bowl with 2 tbsp of oil, 1 tsp of ground cumin, 1½ tsp of Anatolian sumac, the cinnamon, allspice, 1 tsp of salt, 1 tsp Ottoman Kofte Spice, and a good grind of black pepper. Mix well together to combine, then spread out on the prepared baking sheet paper.
Roast until the chicken is cooked through. This can take about 30 minutes if starting with breasts, and up to 45 minutes if starting with the whole chicken, quartered. Remove from the oven and set aside. Don't discard any juices that have collected in the pan.
Meanwhile, put 2 tbsp of oil into a large sauté pan and place over medium heat. Add the pine nuts and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, until the nuts are golden brown, be careful not to burn. Transfer to the prepared bowl (leaving the oil behind in the pan) and set aside. Add the remaining ¼ cup/60ml of oil to the pan, along with the onions and ¾ tsp of salt. Return to medium heat for about 15 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the onions are completely soft and golden. Add 2 tbsp of sumac, the remaining 2 tsp of cumin, and a grind of black pepper and mix well, until the onions are completely coated. Remove from the heat and set aside.
When ready to assemble the dish, preheat the broiler and slice or tear the bread into quarters. Place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes to get crisp, then arrange on a large platter. Top the bread with half the onions, followed by all the chicken and any chicken juices left in the pan (Important). Plate the chicken on top of the bread how you like it. Spoon the remaining onions over the top and sprinkle with the pine nuts, parsley, remaining 1½ tsp of sumac, and a final drizzle of olive oil.
Serve at once, with the yogurt (Preferably Sheep Yoghurt), and lemon wedges alongside.
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