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Butternut Squash, Chicken and Harissa Rice

Vered Guttman
Butternut squash, chicken and harissa rice

Butternut squash, chicken and harissa rice

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A fall variation of a classic Palestinian upside-down rice dish, originally made with layers of eggplant and cauliflower.

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Butternut Squash, Chicken and Harissa Rice

Recipe by Vered GuttmanCourse: MainCuisine: Palestinian, Arab, IsraeliDifficulty: Medium
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

1

hour 

15

minutes

Harissa, a spicy roasted pepper condiment, is available at Middle Eastern and specialty supermarkets.
Since not all harissa are made equal, taste to see how much of it you want to add to your dish.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup lemon juice (preserved is possible)

  • 3 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs

  • Kosher salt

  • Black pepper

  • 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

  • 1½ lb. peeled butternut squash, in 1½” cubes

  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped

  • 3 tablespoons harissa (or to taste)

  • 2 teaspoon honey

  • 3 cups Jasmine rice, washed

DIRECTIONS

  • In a small pot bring to boil 1 cup lemon juice, 3 cups water and 3 teaspoons kosher salt. Reduce heat to low, cover and keep hot until ready to use.
  • Liberally salt and pepper chicken thighs. Put a tablespoon olive oil in a wide pot over medium-high heat and lightly brown chicken thighs in 2-3 batches, adding another tablespoon olive oil between batches. Transfer to a bowl. Add 2 more tablespoons olive oil to pot and cook butternut squash and onion for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Transfer butternut squash mixture to a separate bowl. Add harissa, honey and 1 teaspoon salt to butternut squash and mix.
  • To arrange the layers in the pot start with chicken at the bottom. Pour any juices the chicken released into the lemon juice pot. Top chicken with 2 cups rice and flatten with a spoon. Top rice with butternut squash and end with 1 cup rice, flattening the surface of rice again. Gently pour hot lemon juice mixture over the rice. Put an upside-down plate on top of the rice to keep the layers tight and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover pot with lid and cook for 1 hour.
  • Let maqlouba sit for 15 minutes, then flip at once (not for the faint of heart!) into a large platter and serve.
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