Cooking made easy
Let our assistant inspire your next meal!
Simply provide a recipe idea or the ingredients you have, and
ScrummyChef will instantly come up with a new recipe just for you.

Traditional Saudi Al Kabsa with Chicken and Spiced Basmati Rice

4.5
Save
Rate
Tap to rate
PREP TIME
40 min
COOKING TIME
90 min
TOTAL TIME
130 min
SERVINGS
8 servings
Dinner Middle Eastern
Traditional Saudi Al Kabsa with Chicken and Spiced Basmati Rice
Ingredients
  • 1/2 teaspoon saffron
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried whole lime powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
  • 1/4 cup butter
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 6 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 (3 pound) whole chicken, cut into 8 pieces
  • 1/4 cup tomato puree
  • 1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 3 carrots, peeled and grated
  • 2 whole cloves
  • 1 pinch ground nutmeg
  • 1 pinch ground cumin
  • 1 pinch ground coriander
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 3 1/4 cups hot water, plus more if needed
  • 1 cube chicken bouillon
  • 2 1/4 cups unrinsed basmati rice
  • 1/4 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
Instructions
1
Combine the saffron, cinnamon, allspice, lime powder, cardamom, and white pepper in a small bowl.
2
Set the spice blend aside for later use.
3
Melt butter in a large cooking vessel over medium heat.
4
Cook the onion and garlic in butter until the onion becomes soft and translucent, approximately 5 minutes.
5
Add the chicken to the pot and cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until it is lightly browned, around 10 minutes.
6
Mix in the tomato puree.
7
Add canned tomatoes with their juice, carrots, cloves, nutmeg, cumin, coriander, salt, black pepper, and the reserved spice mix to the pot.
8
Stir everything together for about 3 minutes.
9
Pour in water and add a chicken bouillon cube to the mixture.
10
Bring the sauce to a boil, then reduce the heat and cover the pot.
11
Simmer until the chicken is no longer pink and the juices run clear, approximately 30 minutes.
12
Add rice to the pot and stir it gently.
13
Cover the pot and simmer until the rice is tender and almost dry, about 25 minutes.
14
Add raisins to the pot if necessary, along with a little more hot water.
15
Cover and cook until the rice grains separate, 5 to 10 minutes.
16
Transfer the cooked rice to a large serving platter and arrange the chicken on top.
17
Sprinkle toasted slivered almonds over the chicken.