Iraqi Style Tabyeet Chicken

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons oil
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 roasting chicken, cleaned (3-4 lbs weight)
• 6 cups water

• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
• 1/8 teaspoon clove
• 6 whole cardamom seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 3 cups basmati rice or jasmine rice

• 2 (15 ounce) cans garbanzo beans, drained
• 6 eggs

Directions

1. 1

   Heat the oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat. Stir in the turmeric and brown the chicken on all sides. Add the water, tomato paste, spices, salt, pepper (I use a lot of pepper and not very much salt) and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the chicken.

2. 2

   Return the cooking liquid to a boil and add the rice. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 15 minutes. If the rice is dry, add a little more water. Take the rice off the stove and cool for a few minutes, uncovered.

3. 3

   Mix the garbanzo beans into the rice mixture and then spoon a cup or so of rice into the chicken’s cavity. Make a well in the rice within the pot and nestle the chicken, breast side up, into the rice.

4. 4

   Take the eggs and carefully prick a hole in the round part of the eggshell (to let air escape) and then bury them carefully in the rice around the chicken. Make sure they are not touching the bottom of the pot. Explosions are not good.

5. 5

   Cover with aluminum foil and then cover tightly with the dutch ovens lid and bake in a 200F oven overnight (10 hours). You can also bake the casserole at 350F for 2 hours, reducing the heat to 250F and cooking for 2-3 more hours.

6. 6

   When ready to serve, remove the chicken carefully and de-bone it. Arrange on a serving platter with the rice mounded around it. Scrape up all the crusty rice from the bottom of the pan—it’s the best part. Arrange the eggs, peeled and halved, on top of the rice.