Egyptian Greens-and-Chicken Stew

Meloukhia, a leafy green very popular in rural Egypt, is traditionally the base of this dish. Because it's sometimes hard to find, we've replaced it with a similar yet more subtly flavored green: spinach.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 3 ounces chicken, 2 1/2 cups spinach mixture, and 1/2 cup rice)

Ingredients

• 8  cups  water
• 2  cardamom pods
• 1  (2 1/2-pound) chicken, skinned
• 1  large onion, halved
• 1  bay leaf
• 2  (10-ounce) packages fresh spinach
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
• 2  teaspoons  ground coriander
• 3/4  teaspoon  salt
• 10  garlic cloves, crushed
• 3  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice
• 2  cups  hot cooked rice

Preparation

Combine the first 5 ingredients in an 8-quart Dutch oven or stockpot, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook, uncovered, for 1 hour. Remove from heat. Remove the chicken from the pan, and place in a bowl; cool. Strain the chicken broth through a cheesecloth-lined colander or fine sieve into a bowl, reserving onion; discard the remaining solids. Return the broth to the pan. Remove the chicken from the bones, discarding bones; shred the chicken into bite-size pieces. Keep warm.

Place onion in a bowl, and mash with a fork or potato masher. Add onion to broth; bring to a boil. Add spinach to broth in batches, cooking until wilted.

Heat the oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add coriander, salt, and garlic; sauté 30 seconds or until garlic begins to brown. Add to spinach mixture, and stir in lemon juice. Serve chicken and spinach mixture over rice.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

302 (20% from fat)

Fat:

6.7g (sat 1.2g,mono 3.2g,poly 1.2g)

Protein:

25.3g

Carbohydrate:

36.4g

Fiber:

7g

Cholesterol:

60mg

Iron:

5.8mg

Sodium:

620mg

Calcium:

186mg