Musakhan / (Baked Chicken with Onions) / A Palestinian Cuisine

Musakhan (Arabic: مسخّن‎) is a Jordanian and Palestinian dish composed of roasted chicken baked with onions, sumac, spices and fried pine nuts served over taboon bread. It is also known as Muhammar (Arabic: محمر‎). Sakhan is the Arabic word for hot, so musakhan (mu-SA-khan) means something that has been heated.

Musakhan is a dish that is eaten with one's hands. It is usually presented with the chicken on top of the bread, and could be served with soup. It's a meal to be eaten as a special treat, it is especially cooked in villages in north Palestine.

In Mena's Cooking Club, this month we are going to discover a delicious cuisine of Palestine. This dish I, prepared for my family get together and they loved the chicken which was juicy and delicious. This is so easy to make if you marinate it the previous day and pop it in the oven an hour or two before your guest arrive.  Let's go through the ingredients... and make this together.

Ingredients
For the Marination
10 Chicken Drumsticks
1 Tablespoon Cumin powder.
2 Bay leaves
4 Whole Brown Cardamoms
2 Tablespoons Sumac powder
1 Teaspoon Salt
1/2 Teaspoon Black pepper powder
A pinch of Freshly grated Nutmeg
1⁄2 Teaspoon Cinnamon powder
3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

Other Ingredients
2 Large Onions - finely sliced
1/2  Cup Olive oil
1 Cup Chicken stock

Method

Rinse the chicken pieces and pat dry.

Combine the spices for the marinade and mix with the lemon juice. Rub the marinade  into the chicken well.  Keep aside. 

Fry the onions in oil till light brown in color.  Note the onions should not burn but still be soft.  Add these onions also to the chicken marinade, along with the olive oil and keep in the refrigerator for a day or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Set the chicken out of the fridge and  let it come to room temperature. 

Then add the chicken stock.  Place the chicken on a baking tray, cover with foil and bake  for 30 minutes.   After 30 minutes remove the foil and turn the sides of the chicken and keep uncovered in the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes,   till the liquid is slightly evaporated and the chicken gets a nice dark brown color.  Remove from the oven and serve hot.

I served this with couscous  salad ( look out for the recipe) and bread .  This was  delicious.    You too try it .... Bon Appétit.

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Labels : Chicken, Palestine, Baked, Sumac, Mena Cooking Club, Continental Cuisine