Chicken Maqluba – Upside Down Rice

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 Chicken Maqluba is a popular meat and rice dish throughout the Levant.
Maqluba literally means’ upside – down’ and you have to turn the cooking pot upside down ♨️ onto the serving platter. Hold your breath and hope the tower holds, when you lift the pot gently.. lol. Follow my recipe and you will have no troubles. The chicken as well as the rice in this dish- are subtly flavored yet so tasty.
It’s a homely and yummy rice dish.  It’s actually a simple-to-prepare dish, but it is a little time-consuming, so plan ahead.

Thanks to my childhood friend Muna for the authentic preparation tips.

Total time is not inclusive of – marinating and soaking (1 hour)

The Recipe Intro↓ has more information on the recipe, related links as well the Recipe Video. If you’d like to check it out.

♦Prep time:20 min ♦Cook time: 1 hour ♦Serves 6-8

You can strike through ingredients, as you prep them, by clicking on the ingredient.

Ingredients:

Chicken, medium or large bone-in pieces (with skin)		1 kg
Short-grain rice		4 cups (about 850 gms)
Cauliflower		Half a head
Potatoes, peeled and cut into thick slices		3 large sized
Carrot, cut into medium slices		1
Onion (I use Vidalia), chopped		1 large
Garlic, cut into thin slices		8 large cloves
Bay leaves		3-4
Sunflower or vegetable oil (for sautéing and shallow frying)		As needed
Salt		To taste (about 4 1/2 tsp total)

To Marinate Chicken:

Coriander powder		1 Tbsp
Black pepper		1/2 tsp
Turmeric		1/2 tsp
Ginger and Garlic paste (see notes)		2 Tbsp

For Special Maqluba Spice Mix:

Ground Cinnamon		1 tsp
Turmeric powder		1/2 tsp
Coriander powder		1/2 tsp
Ground Cumin		1/2 tsp
Ground Allspice		1/2 tsp
Black pepper powder		1/4 tsp
Clove powder		1/4 tsp
Green cardamom powder		1/4 tsp

(All ground/ powdered spices are used )

You will need 1 or 2, double-handled pots with tight-fitting lids, A flat non-stick frying pan, and a stockpot or large saucepan for this recipe.

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken: Use fresh Chicken. Keep the skin on. Cut the pieces into medium-large pieces. Pat dry and add to a bowl.
2. Add the ingredients ‘to marinate Chicken’ and rub well into the pieces. Salt is not added now.
3. Set aside the chicken to marinate for 1 hour.
4. Wash and Soak Rice: Meanwhile, rinse the rice thoroughly till the water runs clear, and then soak the rice for up to 30 minutes. (Read the package instructions as different rice varieties require less or no soaking time). However I found for a ‘one-take’  and ‘fixed liquid’ type of cooking like Maqluba, the soaking ensures that the rice will be cooked nicer and not sticky. Keep the rice drained in a colander, after soaking time.
5. Prepare Spice-mix: Mix together all ingredients for the spice mix in a small bowl and set this aside.
6. Chop/Slice Vegetables: Chop the onion. Slice the garlic, potato and cauliflower, and carrot. The potato and cauliflower must be fairly thick slices/chunks. Keep one side of the cauliflower chunks flat, so that they are easier to pan-fry later.
7. Par-Fry/Sear the Marinated Chicken:   Heat 1/4 cup oil in a flat- non-stick pan large enough to fit the chicken pieces. We don’t want to cook them fully, just sear the skin and give it a golden brown color on all sides. This takes 4-5 minutes per side, depending on the size of the pieces.
8. Remove the chicken to a plate. Strain the oil used for frying and add to a stockpot.
9. Preparing the Broth:   Heat the same oil used for frying the chicken in the stockpot. Add the chopped onion and saute till softened nicely and just starting to change color.
10. Return the fried chicken and toss with the onions to coat the chicken and absorb some flavor. Toss just a brief while. Add salt(1tsp) and mix through. Remember we have not added any salt to the chicken while marinating.
11. Add hot water(8cups) and the bay leaves and bring to a simmer. As the water begins to simmer, remove the scum that floats to the top of the broth. Once the broth boils strongly it will just boil ‘into’ the stock and can not be removed. If the scum is not removed it can cause an unpleasant layer of impurity over the cooked rice.
12.  As soon as the water boils, add (1Tbsp) of the prepared spice mix. Stir, cover, and reduce heat to low – bring to a light simmer. Simmer like this, covered, for 20 minutes. Continue at step 15.
13. Frying of Vegetables: Heat a generous amount of oil in the same pan used earlier for chicken( washed clean). First, fry the garlic sliced till light golden and quickly strain them out of the oil Don’t allow them to turn dark, or they will go bitter.
14. To the flavored oil, add the. cauliflower first and fry each side till golden. remove the fried cauliflower to kitchen paper towels, to absorb the excess oil. Repeat this process with the Potatoes. No need to fry the carrots.
15. After simmering for 20 minutes, remove the broth from heat. Remove the chicken pieces gently. Sprinkle a dash of salt lightly, over the chicken pieces and set them aside.
16. Strain the hot broth to remove the onions. We may discard this. Measure the resulting broth and set it aside.
17.  Assemble the Maqluba: Although usually 1 large pot is used to prepare the Maqluba, I prefer to divide the ingredients into two smaller, similar-sized pots. This makes it easier to flip over later. Divide all the ingredients into the two pots in the following order. Or add it all to one pot, if you prefer that.
18. You can very lightly grease the bottom of the pot. (You may also like to line the bottom with a round parchment paper to prevent any ingredients from sticking) First, add a layer of Chicken. Adding the chicken on the bottom helps to get the skin crisp, and you get a sort of ‘baked effect’ that tastes so good.
19. Fill in the gaps with the carrot slices. Next, add a layer of fried cauliflower chunks and then a layer of potato slices.
20. Next, Divide the rice equally into both pots. Do not stir the layers. So you have three layers now, of chicken, vegetables, and rice.
21. Now sprinkle over (1 3/4 tsp salt)/per pot over the rice and( 1/2 tsp) prepared spice mix/per pot. (Again- no mixing please). Also, divide and scatter the fried garlic slices over the top.
22. Slowly pour the strained broth over the rice, just enough to cover the rice by about a centimeter.
23. Cook the Maqluba on Low heat: Place a small flat steel plate over the top to help keep the layers from moving around.
24. Cover the pots, and place them on the lowest heat. After 10-15 minutes ( since we are using smaller pots), the water should be absorbed. The water should never boil, or the layers will be disrupted.
25. After 10 minutes, I listen to the pot to make sure there is no crackling noise. In any case, do not cook too long, or you will burn the bottom layer.
26. Remove the steel plate from the top and check on the side of the rice with a long chopstick, to make sure there is no liquid left.
27. Now return the lid and just rest the cooked maqluba for a further 10 minutes. This will help the rice to plump up in the residual steam and also develop flavor.
28. Open and allow any excess steam to escape.
29. Makloubeh the Maqluba! Or flip it upside down:   Place the serving platter over the open pot and grab hold to the handles as well as the side of the platter – together firmly to Flip it over. Wait at least 5 minutes before gently lifting the pot to reveal the lovely tower, that is Maqluba! Garnishing is not necessary, although you might like some toasted pine nuts. Serve with Yoghurt-Cucumber Salad. I like to add some garlic powder and cumin to my yogurt salad.
30. Sahtain!

 

Chicken Maqluba – Upside Down Rice

 

Notes:

• Sorry, I could not get a good shot on the video of lifting the pot. As I did so, I did not realize that my back was obstructing the camera. Till next time.
• Keeping the chicken pieces larger – suits the Three-stage Cooking of this Maqluba, however, I keep them smaller because my family likes it this way. You just have to be cautious at each stage of overcooking, in this case.
•  Short grain is used to make Maqluba, Long grain rice, may be used but I found it had a ‘prickly’ appearance when the Maqluba pot is lifted.
• Ginger Garlic paste is made by crushing or grinding together equal amounts of fresh garlic and ginger, to make a smooth paste. (Adding little or no water). You can make it fresh or if you use lots of ginger and garlic, you can prepare a jar of ginger-garlic paste. This makes your daily cooking so much easier! I have a video on how to make Ginger-Garlic Paste.
• Most of the spices for the spice mix are easily available at stores. If you don’t have green cardamom powder, you can use 1/2 tsp just the seeds instead.
• You might have a little extra Spice Mix after preparing the Maqluba. I store this away and use it to grill prawns or chicken breast later.
• Tomatoes are optional. You can add them to the bottom of the pot, to prevent the chicken from sticking to the bottom. They must be firm and sliced thickly. I don’t feel the need for Chicken Maqluba, although they are nice with Meat and Eggplant Maqluba.
• Carrot is optional but adds a pop of color, so I recommend it. However, the slices should be thinner than the other vegetables.
• 1 cup = 240 MLS in my measuring cup.
• If you prefer to cook the maqluba in one pot instead of 2 as I have done, I suggest repeating layers. 1 layer of chicken followed by vegetables and rice, then repeat before pouring the broth.

 

Key Ingredients: Rice, Chicken, Onion, Garlic, Spice, Potatoes, Cauliflower, Carrot, Oil, Salt.

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