Baghali Polo, Broad Bean Rice & Chicken

📝 Ingredients

• 320 g basmati rice
• 400 g frozen broad beans
• 25 g fresh dill (1 bunch) + 2 tsp dried dill
• 4 chicken legs (about 250 g each)
• 2 brown onions (about 150 g each)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tsp turmeric (1 for the chicken, 1 for the crust)
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 chicken stock cube + 300 ml hot water
• ½ lemon
• 3 tbsp rapeseed oil (1 for the chicken, 2 for the crust)
• 20 g unsalted butter
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large saucepan
• Non-stick casserole dish with lid (24 cm)
• Sauté pan with lid
• Colander
• Slotted spoon
• Clean tea towel

📖 Steps

1. Put the rice in the casserole dish, cover with cold water and rub it gently between your hands, then pour off the cloudy water. Repeat 4 or 5 times until the water is almost clear, then leave the rice to soak for 20 min in cold salted water.
2. Meanwhile, remove the skin from the chicken legs by pulling it off with a sheet of kitchen paper for a good grip. Season the meat with salt and pepper. Peel and thinly slice the onions, then chop the garlic.
3. Heat 1 tbsp oil in the sauté pan over a medium heat and fry the onions for 8 to 10 min, stirring often, until golden. Add the garlic, 1 tsp turmeric and the tomato purée, then stir for 1 min.
4. Add the chicken legs and brown for 2 min per side. Dissolve the stock cube in the hot water, pour over the chicken, cover and simmer for 40 min over a low heat, turning the legs halfway through. Add the juice of the half lemon, reduce for 5 min uncovered and keep warm.
5. While the chicken is cooking, bring 2 litres of water to the boil with 1 tbsp salt in the large saucepan. Drop in the broad beans for 2 min, then lift them out with the slotted spoon; if they're large, remove their thick skins by pinching them. Finely chop the fresh dill.
6. Drain the soaked rice in the colander and tip it into the same boiling water. Cook for 5 to 6 min: the grains should be tender outside but still firm in the centre. Drain immediately, rinse with lukewarm water, then gently mix in the empty saucepan with the broad beans and both types of dill.
7. Rinse and dry the casserole dish, then heat the remaining 2 tbsp oil and 1 tsp turmeric in it over a medium heat. Spread a thin layer of rice over the bottom, pressing it down, then pile the rest on top in a dome without pressing. Poke 5 holes down to the bottom with the handle of a spoon and dot with pieces of butter.
8. Cover with the lid wrapped in a clean tea towel, which absorbs the steam, gathering the corners up on top so they don't touch the flame. Cook for 10 min over a medium heat, until you hear it sizzle, then for 35 min over a very low heat without ever lifting the lid.
9. Tip the rice onto a large serving dish, then loosen the golden crust from the bottom with a spatula and break it into pieces over the top. Serve with one chicken leg per person, topped with its onion sauce.