Servings: 6-8
Ingredients: 3 lbs organic boneless chicken breasts and thighs
1/2 cup butter (Kerrygold or other grass fed butter preferred)
2 small onions, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 1/2 cups walnuts, finely ground (coffee/spice grinder works best)
2/3 cup pomegranate syrup (or pomegranate molasses)
2 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons sugar (optional: only needed if pomegranate syrup is very sour)
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
1 tablespoon pepper
1 1/4 teaspoons saffron
2 limes, juice of
Instructions: In a large dutch over, heat 1/4 cup butter over medium heat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add minced garlic, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 1/4 teaspoon turmeric and stir for another 2 minutes. Stir in walnuts, pomegranate syrup, salt and pepper. Add stock and saffron (works best if saffron is ground with a morar and pestle and dissolved in warmed stock first. A coffee grinder may work if you have no morar and pestle). Add sugar to taste.
Bring mixture to a boil and reduce to a simmer for 1 hour. Stir occasionally to prevent walnuts from sinking to the bottom. Add stock or water as needed if becomes too thick, and to prevent scorching. The sauce will darken over time and the oil will render out of the walnuts.
Dice chicken into 1 inch pieces. In a separate pan, brown the chicken in 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 teaspoon turmeric, but do not cook all the way through.
Add the chicken and juices to the dutch oven, along with the lime juice. Submerge the chicken in the stew and cook for at least another hour, up to 3 hours. Add water or stock as needed to prevent browning. Add salt or sugar to taste. Finished stew should be thick and shiny. Serve with over basmati rice with pomegranate arils and walnuts as a garnish.
Notes: Is a traditional persian dish. Duck or pheasant can be used instead of chicken. Large pieces of bone in chicken can be used instead of diced boneless chicken. Will give a richer flavor, but may be more difficult to eat, particularly for children.
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