Weeknight Fancy Chicken and Rice
- Total Time
- 50 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- ¼cup ghee (or use unsalted butter)
- 1large yellow onion, peeled, halved and thinly sliced
- 6green cardamom pods, crushed
- 3whole star anise
- 1¼teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- 6garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1½teaspoons turmeric powder
- 1pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ¾-inch pieces
- 2¼cups low-sodium chicken stock
- 1½cups basmati rice
- ¼cup chopped dried apricots
- ¼cup sliced raw almonds, toasted
- ¼cup chopped cilantro leaves
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
405 calories; 14 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 47 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 24 grams protein; 459 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered by
Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.
Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.
Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium saucepan with a lid, melt ghee over medium-high heat. Add onions, cardamom, star anise and ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until onions are soft and a very deep golden brown, about 15 minutes, lowering heat if necessary to keep from burning them. Add garlic and turmeric; cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes, or until very fragrant. Add chicken and cook for 4 minutes, stirring to coat chicken with the onion mixture.
- Step 2
Add stock and remaining salt, increase the heat and bring to a boil. Add rice, stir and cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the rice has absorbed liquid, about 12 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, for 12 minutes. Remove lid and fluff rice with a fork.
- Step 3
Transfer chicken and rice to a bowl, taking care to remove and discard cardamom pods and star anise. Garnish with apricots, almonds and cilantro. Serve at once.
Private Notes
Comments
This was very tasty. I didn't have any star anise, so I added the standard cinnamon stick and bay leaf combo to the cardamom and also some cumin seed, coriander seed and mustard seed. The turmeric amount seemed skimpy, so I tripled that and am glad I did. I also added 2 sliced serrano peppers for some heat. One thing I might do differently next time is to add the rice before the broth and sauté it a bit before adding the broth, so that the rice grains don't stick together as much.
This is a simplified Chicken Biryani. The level of spice is for more timid Western tastes. You know what to do.
Cardamom pods can be bitter, so it's best to crush the pods, remove the seeds and discard the pods, using the seeds alone. They, and the star anise will be easy to remove after cooking if you wrap them in a piece of cheesecloth and tie it into a bundle with a piece of kitchen string before putting them in the pot.
Doubled the spices after reading comments. Tasty! I chopped up the apricots and threw them in with the rice. It added a subtle sweetness to the entire dish which ended up being yummy. Try a vinegary hot sauce for some flavor contrast once it's on your plate. Always love a good chicken-and-rice recipe!
This is a very mild flavored dish, but I'm okay with that. It lets people customize it to their tastes. I did take longer to carmelize the onions, and slightly increased the amount of broth and cooking time to accommodate for brown basmati rice. Next time I probably will up the spices, because I think my cardamom is getting old. The apricots, almonds and cilantro really do make the diag shine, so don't skip them.
I don't understand this recipe. How can 2 and 1/4 cups of liquid make 4 to 6 servings of soup???
It's not soup. The liquid is what's needed to cook the rice.
Advertisement