Authentic Arabic & Levantine Recipes
Maqluba Recipe: Upside-Down Levantine Rice with Aubergine and Chicken
Maqluba is a celebratory Palestinian, Jordanian and Syrian one-pot dish of chicken or lamb layered with fried aubergines and spiced rice. Once steamed in aromatic broth, the pot is flipped upside down onto a platter so it stands like a savoury cake.
Also known as:MaqloubehMakloubaUpside-down rice and eggplant
Servings6
Prep time25 min
Cook time50 min
Ingredients
Add all ingredients to cart- 1 kg bone-in chicken pieces
- 500 g basmati rice or Egyptian short-grain rice, rinsed and soaked for 20 minutes
- 2 large aubergines, sliced lengthwise into thick planks
- 1 large potato and 1 tomato, sliced into rounds
- 1 quartered onion, 2 bay leaves, 1 cinnamon stick and 4 cardamom pods for the stock
- 1 tbsp baharat (seven-spice), 1/2 tsp turmeric, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon and salt
- 2 tbsp ghee plus vegetable oil for frying the vegetables
- Toasted blanched almonds or pine nuts to garnish
Preparation Steps
- 1Simmer the chicken pieces with the onion, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, cardamom pods and salt in about 1.5 litres of water for 25 minutes until tender, then lift out the chicken and strain the stock.
- 2Lightly salt the aubergine and potato slices and fry in hot oil for about 10 minutes until golden brown, drain on kitchen paper and briefly brown the cooked chicken pieces.
- 3Drain the soaked rice and toss with the baharat, turmeric, ground cinnamon, salt and 1 tbsp ghee; line the base of a deep pot with the tomato slices, arrange the chicken on top, layer the potatoes and aubergine slices up the sides and over the meat, and pack the rice on top.
- 4Gently pour in the hot strained chicken stock until it sits 1 cm above the rice, bring to a boil, then cover tightly and steam over low heat for 15 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed.
- 5Turn off the heat and let the covered pot rest for 10 minutes, then invert onto a wide serving platter in one confident motion and scatter with almonds toasted in ghee.
