Hamusta – Sour Chicken Stew with Celery

👨‍🍳 Method

For the Fried onion

1. 1
   Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat.

   ⚙ Pan-fryingStovePot
2. 2
   Add and fry 5–8 minutes, stirring now and then, until the onion is soft and translucent and starts to turn golden at the edges. If it browns too fast, lower the heat.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

   💡Add by cooking time: what needs long (onion, carrot, meat) goes in first, and what burns fast (garlic, dry spices) goes in last, only until fragrant.
3. 3
   Add the garlic and fry 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Don't let the garlic brown.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove

To assemble

1. 4
   Add the chicken thighs and fry 3 minutes per side, until browned on all sides.

   ⚙ Adding to the hot fat and fryingStove
2. 5
   Add the cumin, turmeric, chili pepper, salt and black pepper and stir.
3. 6
   Add the leaf celery, stock, chickpeas and lemon juice and bring to a boil.

   Stove
4. 7
   Turn down the heat, cover and simmer 40–45 minutes, until the celery is tender.

   ⚙ SimmeringStoveLid

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
5. 8
   Serve the stew with white rice.