Chicken mandi
Middle Eats · ♥ 1.8K likes · 42.3K views · 10 min video
Read about half in the BrightCulinary Book
Timestamp
Ingredients
Method
Techniques
- 1 whole lemon
- 1–2 whole green chillies
- 3 whole tomatoes
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp hot chilli flakes
- ½ tsp salt
- 2–3 tbsp lemon juice
- 2–3 tbsp water
Blend the tomatoes, green chillies, garlic, chilli flakes, salt and lemon juice until finely chopped and saucy; thin with water if you want it smooth.
Blending daqqus sauce
- 1½ kg chicken
Spatchcock a whole chicken, break the breast bone and cut into two pieces, or use pre-cut pieces.
Cutting the chicken
- 30–50 threads saffron
- salt
- 2 tbsp boiling water
- 2 tsp salt
Grind the saffron with salt in a mortar to a fine powder, add boiling water and steep 15 minutes.
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp white pepper
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 0.125 tsp ground clove
Option A, wet rub: mix the saffron liquid with salt, ground cardamom, white pepper, turmeric and ground clove and rub over both sides of the chicken, wearing gloves. Marinate at least half an hour.
- 2 litres water
Option B, brine: double the ground spices and salt into the saffron liquid, add 2 litres of water and submerge the chicken; brine at least 2 hours, 6 to 12 ideal, up to 24.
- 3 cups Iranian basmati rice
- 1 whole red onion
- 1 head garlic
- 5 whole cardamom pods
- 1 whole cinnamon stick
- 4 whole cloves
- 2 whole dried black limes
Wash the rice 3 to 4 times until the water runs clear.
- ½ tsp whole black peppercorns
- 1–2 whole green chillies
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Heat the oil in a tall pot and saute the diced onion over medium heat 5 to 6 minutes until softened and translucent.
Whole spices and black limes
Add the whole spices and dried limes and fry with the onions a couple of minutes until aromatic, holding back the garlic and chilli.
- 2¼ tsp salt
- 600 ml chicken stock
Add the washed rice, salt and chicken stock, mix, add the green chilli and garlic halves, scrape the sides and turn the heat off.
Cover the pot with a single layer of foil crimped to the lip and punch it full of holes.
The perforated foil lid
Lay the chicken skin side up on the foil without overlapping, put baking paper over it and seal the whole pot with another sheet of foil.
- ⅓–½ cup golden sultanas
- 1 tbsp oil
Soak the sultanas in boiling water 15 minutes, dry them, then fry in oil 2 to 3 minutes until they puff; drain on paper towels.
- ⅓–½ cup almond slices
- salt
Fry the almond slices in the same oil about a minute and a half until golden, drain and salt immediately.
- saffron
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp oil
Grind saffron with salt, mix in turmeric and oil to a deep gold, brush all over the chicken and return it to the oven 5 to 10 minutes; repeat, twice for 5 minutes each.
Set the chicken aside, peel off the foil and fluff and mix the rice, pulling out the whole aromatics.
Fluffing the rice
- vegetable oil
Optional smoking: shape a foil bowl, light a piece of charcoal until glowing red, set it in the middle of the rice, put the chicken on top, pour oil onto the coal and cover with a glass bowl to trap the smoke.
- parsley
Plate the rice, add the chicken, scatter the fried almonds and sultanas, add parsley and serve with a bowl of dakkous sauce.