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Persian Roasted Chicken with Dried Cherry-Saffron Rice

Persian Roasted Chicken with Dried Cherry-Saffron Rice

Middle Eastern food is my new love. Food is warm and hearty and full of spices. If you make this recipe, you will know what I mean. Cumin and saffron and lots of butter :) I was kind of afraid of the amount of butter in the recipe, but the rice soaked up all of it and the taste was fantastic. The cherries were a pleasant surprise. I think that sugar made their sourness mild. I don’t know why don’t we use them more here. Cherries are one of the most used fruit in desserts here in Serbia, yet we never use them dried, only fresh and frozen. We use raisins a lot and I’m not such a fan of them. Can’t wait to try dried cherries in more recipes!

Persian Roasted Chicken with Dried Cherry-Saffron Rice

(adapted from here)

60 ml olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp saffron threads, crushed
1 kg chicken thighs and legs, with skin, on the bone
salt and freshly ground pepper
250 g basmati rice
150 g butter
100 g dried sour cherries
1 Tbsp sugar
30 g slivered almonds

Combine olive oil, onion, lemon juice, cumin and half of the saffron in a large bowl. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper and coat well with the marinade. Let it stand at room temperature for about an hour.

Drain the chicken, scraping off the onion and saffron and transfer it to a large roasting pan. Add about 60 ml water, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes in a preheated oven on 375°F/190°C. Uncover and bake for 25 minutes more.

While the chicken is roasting, fill a large saucepan with water, add salt and bring to a boil. Add the rice and cook for about 10 minutes. Drain the cooked rice. In a small bowl, dissolve the remaining saffron in 1 tablespoon of water. Put the rice into a bowl and stir in the saffron water.

Melt the butter with the dried sour cherries and sugar. Spoon one third of the rice into a buttered baking dish. Top with half of the sour cherries, butter and slivered almonds. Cover with half of the remaining rice and the remaining sour cherries, butter and almonds. Top with the last layer of rice and pour remaining butter on top, if there is any. Cover the dish with aluminum foil and bake for about 20 minutes (while the chicken is baking).

Preheat the broiler when the rice is done. Broil the chicken, skin side down, for 2 minutes. Turn the chicken and broil until the skin is browned and crisp, for about 3 minutes.

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10 Comments

  • Nevena February 1, 2012 10:33 am

    prekrasno jelo! ovo moram jednom pripremiti, baš jučer sam nabasala na sušene višnje u Mercatoru, jedina mana im je paprena cijena. prelijepa prezentacija! :)

    • Marija February 1, 2012 10:43 am

      Ja bi ovo pravila i sa sušenim brusnicama. Mislim da bi se uklopile i one.

  • Jenn and Seth (@HomeSkilletCook) February 3, 2012 12:10 pm

    this sounds delicious! thanks for sharing :)

  • Michele February 13, 2012 3:53 pm

    Looks awesome! Have not seen a recipe quite like this so I am anxious to try it! I love your photos! I’m sure my family will love it and I will make it very soon! Thanks for sharing!

  • kitchenvoyage February 17, 2012 10:50 am

    A lot of Spanish flavours, well done, looks great. I dont like the choice of basamanti rice for the recipe I rather like or paella rice or Arborio rice

  • rhonda March 28, 2012 8:39 am

    My Mother-in-law would make this all the time, it is fabulous!! Persian food is awesome, they love the safron flavor in almost everything. Funny, its also the most expensive herb on the planet per oz. :)

    Found you on someone’s pintest site, great recipes you have.

    • Marija April 2, 2012 7:08 am

      Thanks Rhonda!

  • Steve | Healthy Lunch April 2, 2012 9:38 am

    wow I am also a big fan of middle eastern food but the way this image is taken it is quite something. honestly it just made me hungry. In your opinion what drink would you suggest with this dish? plus I am surprised there is no almonds and raisins in the recipe.

    • Marija April 2, 2012 1:33 pm

      Steve, there are almonds. A little bit of slivered ones.

      I’m not sure about the drink. Personally, when I have something that is so full of flavor like this one, I prefer to only have water.

  • angie November 29, 2014 5:08 pm

    what a dish with lots of festive flavors perfect to spark up taste buds in the winter months

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