Arabic Chicken Mandi | Smokey Chicken & Rice
Dec 14
Chicken Mandi has always been on my bucket list. The soft succulent meat pieces soaked in beautiful aromatics, the fragrant long grained rice having a dash of freshness form the lemon slices - if there is something I like over biryani at times is this meat & rice dish.
Mandi (مندي) is a traditional Yemeni dish that originated from Hadhramaut, Yemen. It consists of meat and rice with a special blend of spices, cooked in a pit underground for long hours. It is a very popular dish in the Arabian Peninsula and also a staple dish in many areas like Egypt, Turkey, the Levant etc. Mandi has become equally popular in our country because it is less of a hassle than a typical biryani and yet has richness of flavors and taste.
Mandi is considered the main dish served during special events, such as Eid, weddings, and feasts in Yemen and southern Saudi Arabia. In Arabic themed restaurants, apart from the regular seating, there are some sections where you can sit on the floor cushions and rice & meat dishes are served in a large plate when two three people sit together and eat from the same plate.
The word "mandi" comes from the Arabic word "nada", meaning "dew", and refers to the moist 'dewy' texture of the meat, which is result of the slow cooking it in a clay oven or tandoor, typically a hole dug in the ground. Dry wood pieces are burned in the tandoor and once it reaches a certain temperature the rice pot is then suspended inside the tandoor without touching the charcoal and the meat marinated with the special mandi masala is then placed on a wire rack on top of the rice. The tandoor is then closed and the meet and the rice is cooked on slow heat of the oven. The fat and the spices that drips from the steaming chicken infuses the rich flavors into the rice pot below, while the tandoor adds the smokiness to the overall meat and rice.
Even though it all sounds too elaborate and hard to replicate at home, but that is not the case. humans always find a workaround to do difficult things easy way. So today I will be talking about how we can make this amazing flavorful dish right in the comfort of your home without even having a tandoor!
And after all what better than to flag off the winter season with a heart warming plate of chicken mandi. I had a lot of fun cooking and eating it and hope you will enjoy too!
Marination time - 2 hours to overnight
- Cumin - 1 tbsp
- Cinnamon Stick - 2 inch
- Cardamom - 4
- Nutmeg - 1/4th tsp
- Cloves - 4
- Coriander whole - 1 1/2 tsp
- Black Pepper - 10
- Salt - 1 tsp
- Mandi spice - 2 tbsp
- Lime juice - 1 tsp
- Ginger powder - ½ tsp
- Red chili- ½ tsp
- Refined Oil - 2 tbsp
- Chicken with full leg pieces - 2
- Mandi spice mix - 1 tbsp
- Long Grain Basmati Rice - 2 cups
- Cashews - 3 tbsp
- Almonds - 3 tbsp
- Raisins - 2 tbsp
- Onion - 3 tbsp
- Green Chilli - 2-3 (slitted)
- Dry whole lemon - 1 ( 2 weeks old lemon*)
- Garlic Ginger paste - 1 tsp
- Salt - 1 tsp
- Saffron Strands - 4 to 5
- Water - 4 ½ cups
- Cooking oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- Ghee - 1 tsp
- Dry whole lemon - 1 ( 2 weeks old lemon*)
- Charcoal - 1 piece
- Ghee - 1 tsp
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