I am going to apologize in advance for the crappy pictures - I was in a hurry to cook this dish for a holiday dinner party and didn't have time to plate. In fact, I didn't even get a chance to take a picture of the white sauce that was drizzled on top of the chicken. But the dish was so yummy that I just had to share the recipe, crappy, incomplete pictures and all.
Everyone who has been to New York is well aware of the famous halal street vendors on every other corner, serving up platefuls of chicken marinated in spices like coriander and oregano over a bed of tumeric-spiked long grain rice. A tangy and sweet greek yogurt-based white sauce is drizzled on top. There are different renditions of this recipe - the Huffington Post version has alot more spices including cloves, paprika, curry powder and tumeric added to their chicken. As I am a Serious Eats fan, I opted for Kenji's version of the famous chicken and rice.
Halal Chicken and Rice
adapted from Serious Eats
Ingredients
Chicken:
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
3 garlic cloves
1/4 cup light olive oil
Kosher salt, sugar and freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat (6 to 8 thighs)
1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil
Rice:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 cups long-grain or Basmati rice
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
White Sauce:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
For the chicken: Combine the lemon juice, oregano, coriander, garlic, and olive oil in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Season the marinade to taste with kosher salt, sugar and black pepper. Place the chicken in a 1-gallon zipper-lock bag and add half of the marinade (reserve the remaining marinade in the refrigerator). Turn the chicken to coat, seal the bag, and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours, turning occasionally to redistribute the marinade. Do not marinate the chicken longer than 4 hours or it’ll get a mushy texture. If you must delay cooking the chicken for any reason, remove it from the marinade, pat it dry with paper towels, and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Remove the chicken from the bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Season with kosher salt and pepper, going heavy on the pepper. Heat the oil in a 12-inch heavy-bottomed cast iron or stainless-steel skillet over medium-high heat until it is lightly smoking. Add the chicken pieces and cook without disturbing until they are lightly browned on the first side, about 4 minutes. Using tongs, flip the chicken. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until the chicken is cooked through and the center of each thigh registers 165°F. on an instant-read thermometer, about 6 minutes longer.
Transfer the chicken to a cutting board and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Roughly chop the chicken into 1/2- to 1/4-inch chunks. Transfer to a medium bowl, add the remaining marinade, cover loosely with plastic, and refrigerate while you cook the rice and prepare the sauce.
For the rice: Melt the butter over medium heat in a large Dutch oven. Add the turmeric and cumin and cook until fragrant but not browned, about 1 minute. Add the rice and stir to coat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the rice is lightly toasted, about 4 minutes.
Add the chicken broth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. At this point, you can follow Kenji's recipe which cooks the rice over the stovetop. Unfortunately, I am horrible at making stovetop rice as I tend to undercook, overcook or burn the rice. So I opted to just throw everything into the rice cooker.
Stovetop: Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 15 minutes without disturbing. Remove from the heat and allow to rest until the water is completely absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes.
For the sauce: In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, yogurt, sugar, vinegar, lemon juice, parsley, and 2 teaspoons black pepper. Whisk to combine. Season to taste with salt.
To serve: Return the entire contents of the chicken bowl (chicken, marinade, and all juices) to the skillet. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until heated through. To serve, divide the rice, lettuce, tomato, and toasted pita bread evenly among four to six plates. Pile the chicken on top of the rice. Top with the white sauce and hot sauce.
This dish was a winner at the holiday party! I will definitely be making this again and again. The chicken was moist and full of flavor. Cooking the rice in the rice cooker was a good move - the rice came out perfectly fluffy, not over or undercooked. My only qualm was the white sauce - I'm not sure if there was just too much greek yogurt but the tang was overwhelming, even with all the chopped parsley. Next time, I'll probably just pick up some Tzatziki sauce from Trader Joe's as a substitute. Otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing!
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