Lebanese Chicken Fatteh
These dinner bowls are a modern twist on the beloved Lebanese chicken fatteh casserole. Lebanese spiced poached chicken with toasted pita and mint yogurt sauce, served in dinner bowls with Lebanese rice and Mediterranean salad.
- Prep time
- 5 min
- Cook time
- 25 min
- Yield
- 6 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 4 bone-in chicken breasts, skins removed
- Salt
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 4 whole cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- 6 cloves
- Water
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tsp sweet Spanish paprika
- 1 tsp ground sumac
- 1/2 cup toasted pine nuts
- 1/2 cup toasted sliced almonds
- Fresh parsley leaves for garnish
- 2 loaves Lebanese pita bread, toasted in the oven until lightly brown, and broken into chips
- 1 1/2 cup plain low-fat yogurt (not Greek yogurt)
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint (or 2-4 tbsp dried crushed mint)
- pinch salt
Instructions
- 1
Prepare the mint yogurt sauce. Place the yogurt, garlic, mint, and salt in a small bowl. Mix with a fork until well-combined. Cover and refrigerate for now.
- 2
If you like, prepare Lebanese rice according to this recipe and set aside. Prepare Mediterranean salad according to this recipe; cover and refrigerate for now.
- 3
Arrange the chicken breasts in a single layer in the bottom of a heavy cooking pot or Dutch oven. Sprinkle with salt. Add apple cider vinegar, bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, cardamom, and cloves. Pour in enough cold water to cover the chicken by 1 inch or so.
- 4
Place the pot of chicken on the stove-top over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Skim off the white foam that collects on the surface of the water. Turn heat to low, cover and cook another 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through registering an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- 5
With a slotted spoon, remove the chicken from the cooking broth and place on a cutting board to cool. Strain and reserve the broth for later or other use.
- 6
When cool enough to handle, remove the bones and shred the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
- 7
In a large cast iron skillet like this one, heat 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 4 minutes, stirring regularly. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so. Add the chicken, paprika and sumac. Season with salt and pepper. Stir until the chicken is well-coated. Cook for 5-7 minutes until the chicken is warmed through.
- 8
Remove from heat and add the toasted nuts. Garnish with fresh parsley leaves.
- 9
To serve, divide toasted pita bread among serving bowls. Add the Lebanese chicken;top with a generous scoop of the mint yogurt sauce and more toasted nuts, if you like. If you’ve gone a step further and prepared the rice and salad, then make room to add them next to the Lebanese chicken fatteh (as in the photos above). Enjoy!