Mathrooba: Beaten Chicken and Rice

by Noor Murad, featured in Lugma

Published by Quadrille

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Introduction

In testing recipes for this book I’d give away food to friends, neighbours and anyone willing to give the dishes a home. My dear friend Anosha, who eagerly claimed the mathrooba, said that I needed a better description than the one I had given her: ‘Hey, it’s me again, do you fancy a savoury porridge for dinner?’ ‘You’re massively underselling it,’ she fed back to me later that night, ‘Even my 2-year-old loved it.’ And she’s right: this is comforting, delicious and truly unique. Mathrooba, meaning ‘beaten’ in Arabic, is typically served during Ramadan, where it’s easy to digest but also satiating. The rice, chicken and spiced tomato base is cooked low and slow until the meat is tender and the rice grains barely discernible. Then, staying true to its name, the mixture is beaten by hand into a consistency similar to a congee, but more heavily spiced and a little thicker. Call it nostalgia but it’s one of my all-time favourite dishes that I’ll happily eat throughout the year, but especially in the winter months.

For US measures and ingredient names, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.

As featured in

Lugma

Image of Noor Murad's Mathrooba — Photo by Matt Russell

Ingredients

Serves: 6

Metric U.S.

FOR THE MATHROOBA

4 tablespoons olive oil
2 red onions (finely chopped)
1 kilogram chicken legs (about 4 large ones), skin on, bone in
6 garlic cloves (finely grated)
40 grams fresh ginger (peeled and finely grated)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon cumin seeds (finely ground using a pestle and mortar)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (finely ground using a pestle and mortar)
1 teaspoon garam masala
½ teaspoon chilli flakes
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 dried lime (black or regular), pierced a couple of times with a sharp knife
600 grams plum tomatoes roughly grated (shredded) and skins discarded (500g/1lb 3oz)
3 tablespoons tomato puree (paste)
40 grams fresh coriander (roughly chopped, plus an extra 1 tbsp, to serve)
20 grams dill fronds (roughly chopped, plus an extra 1 tbsp, to serve)
200 grams basmati rice (washed until the water runs clear, then drained)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
fine sea salt and black pepper

FOR THE TOPPING

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 onions (halved and thinly sliced)
3 mild fresh chillies (a mixture of green and red, left whole)
40 grams unsalted butter

FOR THE MATHROOBA

4 tablespoons olive oil
2 red onions (finely chopped)
2lb 4 ounces chicken legs (about 4 large ones), skin on, bone in
6 garlic cloves (finely grated)
1½ ounces fresh gingerroot (peeled and finely grated)
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon cumin seeds (finely ground using a pestle and mortar)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (finely ground using a pestle and mortar)
1 teaspoon garam masala
½ teaspoon chile flakes
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 dried lime (black or regular), pierced a couple of times with a sharp knife
1lb 5 ounces plum tomatoes roughly grated (shredded) and skins discarded (500g/1lb 3oz)
3 tablespoons tomato puree (paste)
1½ ounces cilantro (roughly chopped, plus an extra 1 tbsp, to serve)
¾ ounce dill fronds (roughly chopped, plus an extra 1 tbsp, to serve)
7 ounces basmati rice (washed until the water runs clear, then drained)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
fine sea salt and black pepper

FOR THE TOPPING

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 onions (halved and thinly sliced)
3 mild fresh chiles (a mixture of green and red, left whole)
1½ ounces unsalted butter

Method

Mathrooba: Beaten Chicken and Rice is a guest recipe by Noor Murad so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe

Heat the oil in a large, lidded, deep-sided, heavy-based pan over a medium-high heat. Add the red onions and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, just to soften. Add the chicken legs and cook for 6 minutes, turning to seal on both sides (they won’t be totally browned). Stir in the garlic, ginger, spices and dried lime and cook for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, tomato purée and herbs and cook for 2 minutes more. Pour in 1 litre (35fl oz) of water, then stir in the rice, 2 teaspoons of salt and a generous grind of pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover, turn down the heat to its lowest setting and leave to cook for 80 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes or so to prevent the bottom from catching.
Meanwhile, make the topping. Add the oil to a large frying pan (skillet) over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onions, chillies and ¼ teaspoon salt, stirring to coat in the fat, then turn down the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are deeply caramelized and the chillies have softened, about 30 minutes. Transfer into a bowl, then return the pan to a medium heat with the butter. Cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned and smelling nutty. Empty into a small heatproof bowl to stop it cooking further.
Once the mathrooba is ready, turn off the heat and then use tongs to remove the chicken legs and transfer them into a bowl. When cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones (or save them to make a stock) then use two forks to roughly shred the meat. Stir the shredded chicken and lemon juice back into the pan. Using a whisk or a potato masher, beat the mixture for 5–10 minutes, until the rice grains are no longer discernible and the mixture resembles a spoonable porridge. If you’d like it a little looser, add another 100ml (3½fl oz) of hot water or so until you get your desired consistency. Taste and adjust salt and lemon levels at this point too (you might want to add more of either).
When ready to serve, spread the mathrooba out in a large shallow bowl and top with the onions and chillies. Pour over the browned butter, sprinkle over the extra herbs and serve warm.

Heat the oil in a large, lidded, deep-sided, heavy-based pan over a medium-high heat. Add the red onions and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, just to soften. Add the chicken legs and cook for 6 minutes, turning to seal on both sides (they won’t be totally browned). Stir in the garlic, ginger, spices and dried lime and cook for 2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, tomato purée and herbs and cook for 2 minutes more. Pour in 1 litre (35fl oz) of water, then stir in the rice, 2 teaspoons of salt and a generous grind of pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover, turn down the heat to its lowest setting and leave to cook for 80 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes or so to prevent the bottom from catching.
Meanwhile, make the topping. Add the oil to a large frying pan (skillet) over a medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onions, chillies and ¼ teaspoon salt, stirring to coat in the fat, then turn down the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are deeply caramelized and the chillies have softened, about 30 minutes. Transfer into a bowl, then return the pan to a medium heat with the butter. Cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until browned and smelling nutty. Empty into a small heatproof bowl to stop it cooking further.
Once the mathrooba is ready, turn off the heat and then use tongs to remove the chicken legs and transfer them into a bowl. When cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones (or save them to make a stock) then use two forks to roughly shred the meat. Stir the shredded chicken and lemon juice back into the pan. Using a whisk or a potato masher, beat the mixture for 5–10 minutes, until the rice grains are no longer discernible and the mixture resembles a spoonable porridge. If you’d like it a little looser, add another 100ml (3½fl oz) of hot water or so until you get your desired consistency. Taste and adjust salt and lemon levels at this point too (you might want to add more of either).
When ready to serve, spread the mathrooba out in a large shallow bowl and top with the onions and chillies. Pour over the browned butter, sprinkle over the extra herbs and serve warm.