Chelo nachodo (chicken and chick-pea stew with rice)
6 servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | cups | -water |
| 4 | Chicken legs AND | |
| 4 | Chicken thighs, loose skin discarded | |
| 1 | cup | Dried chick-peas, soaked in water overnight & drained |
| 2 | mediums | (1 cup) onions, chopped |
| 1 | Rib celery w/leaves, sliced | |
| 1 | large | Carrot, sliced diagonally |
| 1 | (1/2 lb) zucchini, sliced | |
| 1 | teaspoon | Salt, or to taste |
| ¼ | teaspoon | Pepper |
| ¼ | teaspoon | Ground cuminseed |
| ¼ | cup | Fresh coriander, chopped |
| ¼ | cup | Fresh dill, chopped |
| ¼ | cup | Lemon juice |
| 4 | cups | Water |
| 1 | teaspoon | Salt |
| 2 | cups | Raw rice, well rinsed |
| ¼ | cup | Corn oil |
Directions
STEW
RICE
CHELO NACHODO (Chicken & Chick-Pea Stew w/Rice) Here is a family-style dish to be served any time of year. It is a substantial soup stew, well seasoned in Afghan style & combined w/a crispy-bottomed rice provides contrasting texture to stew. The stew & rice are served separately.
1. To prepare stew: Bring water to a boil, add chicken pieces, & remove foam as it cooks. Add chick-peas, onions, celery, carrots, zucchini, salt, pepper, & cuminseed. Cover pan & cook over moderate heat for 45 mins. Add coriander, dill, & lemon juice & simmer over low heat for 15 mins more. This is sufficient to tenderized chicken & ingrate all seasonings.
2. To prepare rice: Bring 4 c water & salt to a boil in pan. Add rice & cook over moderate heat for 5 mins. Drain rice in colander & rinse w/cold water. Return rice to pan and pour oil over all. Cover pan & cook over low heat for ½ hr. No other water is added & rice cooks only moisture clings to it after rinsing. The rice will develop a crisp bottom layer.
Serve rice & stew separately. Each diner takes their own portion of rice & covers it w/as much stew as they wish. Serve warm.
VARIATION: 2 lb of boneless beef chuck cut into 6 equal pieces may be used in place of chicken, but cooking will take longer. Cook beef stew over moderate heat for 1 hour. Add coriander, dill, & lemon juice, reduce heat to low, & simmer, covered, ½ hour more, or until beef is tender.
Recipe: "Sephardic Cooking" by Copeland Mark -- 600 Recipes Created in Exotic Sephardic Kitchens from Morocco to India -- Copyright 1992 Published by Donald I. Fine, Inc., New York, N.Y. D. Pileggi