I love Claudia Roden’s Book of Jewish Food. There are 800 recipes in it, from all the ethnic streams of Jewish life. You can almost hear Ms. Roden’s warm, humorous voice telling the myriad histories of Jews in the Diaspora and what we eat. She’s written a little encyclopedia of Jewish history and Jewish cooking.
Lately I’ve been doing a lot of cooking out of the book. So when I found myself with a whole chicken and no idea what to do with it, I opened up The Book of Jewish Food and found this recipe.
At first I thought: “Chicken soup with cinnamon?!” But I can tell you – it’s not only easy to cook, it’s really easy to eat. The rice, cooked for a long time in a rich chicken broth, gives the soup a smooth, glutinous texture that’s infinitely soothing, while the spices and lemon blend together subtly to give it character. Just that warm, exotic touch that your dinner needs on a really cold night.
Iraqi Chicken Soup with Rice
yield: 6 generous portions
printable version here
Recipe adapted from Claudia Roden’s The Book of Jewish Food.
Ingredients:
1 whole chicken
4 celery stalks, with some of the leaves, chopped
2/3 cup short-grain rice, clean and rinsed
1 small onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
Juice of 1 large lemon OR 1/4 preserved lemon
2 teaspoons of salt
1-½ teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon freshly-grated ginger root, or ½ teaspoon dried, ground ginger
More salt and pepper to taste
Method:
1. Place the chicken in a large pot and add 2-¾ quarts (11 cups) of water.
2. Bring to a boil, removing any scum that rises to the surface.
3. Add all the other ingredients plus 2 teaspoons of salt.
4. Simmer 1 hour over a low flame.
5. Remove the chicken to a large platter or a chopping block. Let it cool a few minutes till you can handle it.
6. Take away the skin and remove the bones. Return the flesh to the soup pot.
7. Simmer the soup 1/2 hour longer.
8. Taste for salt and pepper; add more if needed.
Serve the soup with plenty of chicken in each bowl.
More recipes starring chicken from Israeli Kitchen:
Nut and Herb-Crusted Chicken Fillets
Garlic Chicken (or Turkey) Bites
Roasted, Fruit-Stuffed Chicken For Tu B’Shvat
Curried Chicken With Sweet Potatoes and Apples
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