Moughrabieh, The Lebanese Couscous

This dish is the specialty of Lebanon, made with Lebanese couscous, which is similar to, but larger than the Israeli couscous.

This can be prepared in advanced, and will take about 1 hr to prepare, and 30 minutes to assemble. Everything can be prepared well in advance except the couscous.

500 grams of couscous

250 grams of chickpeas (pre-soaked and boiled)

10 pieces of chicken thighs

2 medium Spanish onions

225 grams of salted butter/1/2 lb.

¼ cup of olive oil

1 litre of chicken stock

1 tsp salt

1 tsp of cinnamon

1 tbsp of 7-spice Lebanese mix (you can buy the mix or make your own)

(Anissa Helou’s Mixture)

1tbsp finely ground black pepper

1 tbsp ground allspice

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp grated nutmeg

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground Ginger

Chickpeas

On medium high heat, melt half the butter in a pan, and add the chickpeas, add a sprinkle of cinnamon and 7-spice mixture. Cook for 15 minutes until the chickpeas are lightly golden.

Place in a bowl.

Onions

In the same pan, on medium high heat, melt the rest of the butter, and add olive oil.

Add the two finely chopped onions, and sauté until lightly golden, remove and add to the bowl.

Chicken

Sprinkle the chicken with half the salt, and some of the 7-spice mixture on both sides. Then add into the pan half the chicken pieces and cook to a golden crisp on both sides. Remove and add to a new bowl.

Couscous

Fill a large pasta pot with water and add some salt to the water. Bring to a boil and add the couscous. Boil for 10 minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.

The assembly

In a large wok/paella pan or deep wide rondeau pot, add the chicken stock and bring to a simmer, then add the couscous, chickpeas, and onions, mix well then add the chicken on top. Taste to ensure there is enough salt, the cinnamon should be pronounced flavor.

Leave to simmer for 20 minutes, then it’s ready to be served.

Serves 6 people.