Molokhia

Ingredients

Quantities for 5 servings.

• 500 g Molokhia leaves, fresh or frozen
• 1.2 kg Chicken
• 10 clove Garlic
• 2 tbsp Ground coriander
• 80 g Ghee
• 4 piece Cardamom pods
• 2 piece Bay leaves
• 1 piece Onion
• 400 g Rice, to serve
• 2 piece Lemon, to serve
• to taste Salt and pepper

Method

1. Simmer the chicken with the onion, cardamom and bay for forty-five minutes and strain the broth.
2. Chop the molokhia leaves finely with a mezzaluna or blitz them to an even green mass.
3. Bring the broth to the boil, add the leaves and immediately drop the heat to its lowest.
4. Hold the soup just below a simmer for ten minutes, stirring; it thickens and turns slippery.
5. Crush the garlic with salt into a paste and fry it in ghee with the coriander until deep gold.
6. Pour the tempering into the soup — it will hiss — and cover the pot immediately for a minute.
7. Serve with boiled rice, the chicken and lemon, each in its own dish.