Time: 2 hours | Complexity: Difficult | Yields: 4 servings | Tools: Saute pan, plate, serving platter, coal, 4-quart saucepan

THE traditional way to cook this recipe is underground but realistically that is just not possible for most of us so in this recipe you learn how to do it at home and work with what you have for almost the same amazing flavor. In the Gulf countries mandy is made from either chicken or lamb. I have also made a video so that you can see how we smoke rice for this dish. You can watch it at the end of the post. Here in Saudi we love to serve Salata Hara with meat and rice dishes. You can find that recipe here.

You also want to make sure the skin is left on the chicken. This is one of the keys for cooking mandy because the skin produces natural fat for it to cook in with the spices. This is why we do not use oil. You can use the shell of an onion then add a cube of butter and a bukhoor coal in the middle of the rice and chicken to smoke it. Just quickly add the lid and allow it to sit for at least 15 minutes. This dish will taste like it came from a pit or grill when finished.

Ingredients

• 1 large chicken, cut up
• 4 teaspoons mandy spice mix
• 2 teaspoons salt

Rice

• 1-1/2 cups basmati rice
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 tomato, diced
• 4 whole cardamom pods
• 4 whole cloves
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 chicken bouillon cubes
• 3 cups water

Smoking

• 3 tablespoons butter
• shell of half onion (bowl shaped)
• bukhoor coal

Directions

1. Rub spice and salt all over chicken, place it in a non-stick saute pan , cook chicken uncovered with no oil until tender and brown for 45 minutes. Place cooked chicken on a plate reserving the pan.

2. Next, In a 4-quart sauce pan saute onion with butter until tender. Add whole cardamom, cloves, salt, rice and water; stir. Bring to a full boil add chopped tomatoes then cover and reduce heat to low. Cook (do not remove lid) for 15 minutes.

3. After the chicken and rice has cooked pour the rice into the saute pan used to cook the chicken. Place the onion shell with butter into the middle. Carefully place chicken around the pan. Add coal onto butter ans quickly shut the lid. Allow to smoke for 15 minutes. Serve.

Serve with: Samboosas, salad

Video on how to smoke rice: