Chicken and Vegetable Maqluba with homemade chicken stock

👨‍🍳 Method

For the homemade chicken stock ✓ Homemade · or skip – back to store-bought

1. 1
   Put the chicken, the onion, carrot, celery, parsley, bay leaves and peppercorns and the water in a pot and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam that rises during the first 15 minutes with a spoon.

   StovePot
2. 2
   Turn down and simmer gently 2.5–3 hours.

   Stove

   💡A gentle simmer, not a boil: a hard boil dries the food out and clouds it, a slow simmer cooks it evenly.
3. 3
   Strain the stock.

   Colander

For the Maqluba (Upside-Down Rice)

1. 4
   Soak the rice at least half an hour in water and drain.

   Bowl

   💡Soak in plenty of water, well above what's being soaked: legumes and grains swell and drink water, and whatever sticks out stays hard. Drain well before continuing.
2. 5
   Heat the oil in a skillet and fry the eggplant slices and potato slices in it until golden. Remove and set aside.

   StoveFrying pan

   💡What you brown (meat, patties, schnitzel) goes into hot oil: in lukewarm oil it soaks it up and comes out greasy. For onion and garlic that you soften, oil heated over medium or low heat is enough; do not wait for it to smoke.
3. 6
   Add the chicken cubes and onion and fry, until golden. Add the turmeric, baharat, salt and black pepper and stir.

   Stove

   💡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.
4. 7
   In a wide pot, layer the tomatoes, eggplant slices and potato slices, then the chicken cubes on top, and finally the drained rice.

   Wide, shallow pot

   💡The bottom layer will be the top after flipping: arrange it neatly and tightly, and the rice above it holds everything together.
5. 8
   Add the stock to 1 cm above the rice, and bring to a boil.

   Stove
6. 9
   Turn down' the heat to very low', cover and simmer 45 minutes.

   StoveLid
7. 10
   Let the pot stand covered off the heat 10 minutes, then flip it confidently onto a large serving platter and serve with yogurt.

   LidServing platter

   💡Resting off the heat firms up the rice, so the maqluba comes out whole.