Qidra, a Dish That Takes You on a Culinary Journey to Hebron in the West Bank

This recipe was originally posted on Medium and has received quite a lot of love over the past year. I was inspired to make this dish and write about it after a trip to Hebron in the West Bank, Palestine. Qidreh, which is a very traditional Palestinian meat and rice dish, served as my welcome lunch when I visited my family in Hebron in 2015.

I decided to give it a go and try cooking the meal myself, but I could only find a few recipes online and they all called for lamb, which is the more traditional meat of choice for this dish. I had chicken qidreh at my grandma’s and I really wanted to recreate that exact dish, so I adapted this recipe from OnionIn by substituting lamb with chicken and also adding turmeric to get a lovely golden colored rice and the subtle depth of taste that turmeric adds. I suggest checking out the link for the original recipe, especially if you want to have a more traditional version with lamb, plus it provides nutritional info for those interested.

For the final meal, I paired the chicken Qidreh with hummus, a simple yogurt sauce and a fantastic Spiced Chickpea and Fresh Vegetable Salad.

Please enjoy the recipe and photos below:

Recipe for Qidreh with a Twist : Ingredients:

Organic chicken (I used 4 drumsticks and two breasts still on the bone) 1 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon black pepper 1 teaspoon allspice 1/2 teaspoon cumin 1/4 teaspoon cardamom, ground 1 1/4 teaspoon turmeric 3–4 tablespoon olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 head of garlic, peal and separate out the cloves and cut larger cloves in half 1 1/2 cup long grain rice (I used organic basmati rice) 1/2 cup chick peas (most recipes call for dried chick peas that have been submerged in water over night and while I know from experience this tastes a lot better, I cheated and just drained a can of organic chick peas) 6–8 cardamom pods. 3 cup chicken broth

Steps:

Use a dutch over or a pot with a lid that can go into the oven Brown your chicken in 2 tablespoons of olive oil then set the meat aside Add the garlic and onion to the oil remaining in the pot from the chicken, add more oil as needed — cook for about 2 minutes Add the rice to the onion and garlic mixture for about 2 minutes Nows a good time to preheat your oven to 350 degrees Add the chick peas/garbanzo beans, mixing everything for 2 minutes on the heat Add the chicken broth and the cardamom pods and bring it all to a boil Then place the pot with the lid on into the heated oven (center rack) and cook for 40 minutes or so Check with one of the pieces of chicken that you have cooked it through, but try not to overcook it or the chicken will be dry. If it does turn out dry, that’s what the tahini sauce is for :) For vegetarians and vegans, I have cooked this without chicken and it still makes a lovely fragrant rice. Just use your favorite chicken broth alternative and don’t add the chicken, obviously :).

I suggest pairing the dish with a tahini based sauce and a Mediterranean-inspired salad (think cucumbers, tomatoes, maybe some feta, olive oil, vinegar). And voilà, you are set!

I hope you enjoy a little Palestinian cooking in your kitchen sometime soon and please comment if you try this. I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback.

Peace, justice, love and good food from my kitchen to yours.

~ Deema