Celebration Rice With Lamb, Chicken & Garlic Yogurt From Ottolenghi Test Kitchen Recipe on Food52 (2024)

This warming spiced rice is a definite show-stopper, the kind of meal you’d make for a special occasion. We toyed over including this recipe in the book, laborious as it is, but, in all honesty, Noor wouldn’t have it any other way. Rice, she believes, deserves to be prized and treasured—taking center stage at many a family table—and so, make this one as a weekend project, a feast of feasts, a real cause for celebration. Yes, it takes time, but here’s a promise that it is oh-so-worth-it.

Get ahead:

Cook the chicken the day before, refrigerating the flavorful stock and shredded chicken separately.

Make it your own:

Swap out the lamb for ground beef, or a mixture of the two, if you wish. The cinnamon rice is a treat on its own, so skip out on everything else if you want to, and eat this with some veggies and a spoonful of yogurt. —Food52

Directions

1. Put the chicken into a large saucepan, for which you have a lid, along with the cinnamon sticks, onion, garlic, 81/2 cups/2 liters of water, and 2 teaspoons of salt. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium-low and simmer, covered, for 70 minutes, or until cooked through. Lift out the chicken and, when cool enough, tear into large bite-size chunks, discarding the skin and bones. Place the chicken in a bowl with the ground cumin andcinnamon and set aside. Strain the stock through a sieve set over a large bowl, discarding the solids. Measure out 31/2 cups/850ml and keep warm (save the remainder for another use).
2. For the rice, put the oil and half the butter into a large saucepan, for which you have a lid, and place on medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook for 7 minutes, stirring often, until lightly golden. Add the lamb, garlic, and spices and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring often, until the lamb is no longer pink. Add the rice, 3 cups/700ml of the warm stock, 1 3/4 teaspoons of salt, and a good grind of pepper. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to low, cover with the lid, and cook for 15 minutes. Take off the heat and allow to sit, covered, for 15 minutes more. Add the remaining butter and set aside.
3. Meanwhile, make the yogurt sauce by whisking together the yogurt, garlic, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, and the remaining 1/2 cup/150ml of warm stock in a medium bowl.
4. Put 2 tablespoons of oil into a large saute pan on medium high heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook for 5 minutes, to warm through. Remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice and parsley, and set aside.
5. Make the garnish by putting the butter into a small frying pan on medium-high heat. Add the almonds and cook for 3 minutes, stirring, until lightly colored. Add the pine nuts and cook for another 2 minutes, until golden. Remove from the heat and add the Aleppo chile.
6. Spread the rice over a large, round serving platter. Top with the chicken, then pour half the garlic yogurt over the top. Finish with the nuts and butter, followed by the parsley and pomegranate seeds. Serve the remaining yogurt alongside.