Date and Zaatar Chicken Recipe

by: Sandy's Kitchen   |   3 min read

Ingredients:

Chicken:

• 1 kg chicken thighs and drumsticks
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, mashed
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2 tbsp zaatar mix
• 2 tbsp date syrup
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 0.5 tsp allspice
• 0.5 tsp 7 spices 
• 0.5 tsp cinnamon
• 0.5 tsp cardamom 

Rice:

• 2 tbsp olive oil (or half butter and half olive oil)
• 3 tbsp raisins
• 3 medjool dates 
• 4 tbsp almonds
• 1.5 cups rice 
• 0.75 tsp salt
• 0.5 tsp cumin
• 0.25 tsp cinnamon
• 0.75 tsp allspice 
• 2.25 cups water 
• Chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds for decoration

Directions:

1. Pat the chicken dry and place in a bowl, juice the lemon, chop the onion, and mash the garlic.
2. In a large bowl, make the marinade by mixing the olive oil, garlic, zaatar, date syrup, salt, lemon juice and all the spices. Then add the marinade to the chicken and let them sit for a minimum of 1 hour up to overnight. 
3. In a Dutch oven or an oven proof pan, layer the sliced onions on the bottom and then add the chicken with all the collected juices on top. 
4. Bake in a preheated oven at 200C for 45 minutes. Bake covered for the first 20 minutes, then uncovered for the remaining time. 
5. While the chicken is baking, make the rice. First chop the almonds and the dates into small pieces. 
6. Then in a pot with a glass lid, add the olive oil (or olive oil and butter), and toast the almonds until fragrant. Then add the raisins, chopped dates, rice (no need to wash), salt and spices. Mix them all well and then add the water. 
7. When the water comes to a bubbly boil, cover, and cook on low heat for about 12 minutes. Do not uncover during this time. Then turn the heat off and let it rest covered until serving. 
8. For serving, garnish with chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds.