Moghrabieh with Pan-cooked Chicken and Vegetables

I cook Moghrabieh every once in a while, not as often as cous-cous or pasta or rice— sometimes adding it to soups for body, sometimes making a casserole with a bunch of other vegetables, but usually, I serve it in place of rice with some vegetables.

I have to admit that I am a rice cooker fan - the standard electric kind. Many dishes get done without much fuss using my rice cooker - from the simple yet fragrant subzi biriyani to the creamy polenta. Quinoa, barley, millet all get cooked in the rice cooker, much like rice. And so did this moghrabieh.

Chicken breast is rather simple in this meal - marinate in a favorite marinade and pan cook it till done.

Veggies are just steamed - except, I then quickly pan-sauteed the carrots in a bit of broth to add some flavor.

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked moghrabieh pearls

2 cups broth or water

1 tsp crushed caraway seeds (or cumin seeds)

1 tsp dried sumac or crushed fenugreek leaves ("Methi leaves" in Indian stores) 

1 tsp dried crushed mint leaves

1 Tbsp olive oil

salt as needed

Preparation

1. Sauté the uncooked moghrabieh in olive oil, adding the dry spices; then transfer to the rice cooker, add the broth or water and cook in the standard rice cycle; fluff when done and keep warm.
2. Serve it as-is with some sides like Indian Kofta curries, or Tagine, or add it to soups.

Zucchini Mahshi

This Lebanese-cuisine inspired Koussa Mahshi or Stuffed Zucchini with a blend of Mediterranean spices, served hot with fresh warm flat bread, is a treat to be relished.

Small whole zucchini is cut at stem end, cored, stuffed and stewed in tomato-based sauce.

I had fairly large zucchinis and scooping out the core seemed tricky, so, I cut them in half and made little zucchini cylinders/tubes. One half of each zucchini is open at both ends, the other half is open only at one end.

Of course, this means, stuffing is not going to be contained inside and will definitely ooze out when cooked, but, the whole blend in the pot with the softened zucchini cylinders, the sauce, and the aromatic rice stuffing came together nicely in the end.

I used the left over stuffing from Swiss Chard Dolmas.

Ingredients
5 or 6 small zucchinis, stem-end trimmed, cored

For the stuffing:
(see Swiss Chard Dolmas)

For the sauce:
12 oz tomato sauce
1 medium onion, diced finely
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp dried mint (or about 12 to 15 mint leaves chopped finely)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
1 pod of cardamom, crushed
1 Tbsp cayenne pepper powder
1 tsp ground black pepper
½ tsp ground cumin
water and salt as needed

Preparation

Stuff the zucchini and keep handy

Bring the sauce to a simmer in a large pot and arrange the filled zucchini cylinders, cover and simmer over low heat till zucchini is tender and cooked just enough, but not mushy.

moghrabiyah with zaatar chicken

I usually make some simple falafel, tabbouleh, dolmas, baba ghanouj, hummus and such, but, Meeta's Monthly Mingle theme "Arabian Nights" got me interested in making something different, something rare at my table, and I promptly went to Ya Hala store to get some supplies.

Ya Hala restaurant is in SE Portland. We've been there only a couple of times, despite enjoying the food a lot. We rarely eat out, especially after the wee one arrived. The restaurant has a grocery store next door, which is where I went to get some ready-made Zaatar and Moghrabiyah.

Zaatar, to me, in concept, is like Garam Masala: each family, each chef, has their own special proportion of spices so that, despite using the same ingredients, each batch can turn out different. Zaatar is a mixture of thyme, sumac, sesame seeds usually, and possibly some marjoram or fennel. Sumac gives it some tang, and thyme is usually the prominent flavor.


Moghrabiyah (mougrabiya, moghrabieh) is basically pasta: it is made of durum wheat and is usually sold as little round pearls/pellets, aproximately the size of tapioca pearls. It is cooked just like pasta or cous cous, in salted boiling water, until tender.



Ingredients
2-3 boneless skinless chicken breast
½ cup green zaatar (reserve some for rub, rest for cooking)
salt to taste
2 Tbsp oil
1 medium onion, sliced
1-2 green chilies, diced finely
1 medium leek, cleaned and chopped
6-8 pearl onions, peeled, whole (optional)
1 cup plain thick yogurt

½ cup dry moghrabiyah
1 cup water or vegetable/chicken stock, hot

Preparation

toast the moghrabiyah in a pan, and then add it to the measured hot water, and boil on medium low till all water is absorbed and it feels cooked to your taste; or, simply follow the package directions; cover and keep warm

rub the chicken breasts, with some zaatar, add some lemon juice and salt and let it marinate for an hour or so; then cut the chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces

heat 1 Tbsp oil in a pan, sauté the pearl onions (if using) with a pinch of salt and zaatar; set aside

heat 2 Tbsp oil in a pan, add the onions, chilies and leeks, a pinch of salt, and sauté for a bit, then throw in the chicken pieces, add more zaatar and cook till chicken is done; then fold in the yogurt off heat

Serve the zaatar flavored chicken with the moghrabiyah, or rice, or roti.

I am glad I came across Monthly Mingle, else I would not have thought of making this dish at home.