Molokhia - Egyptian Mallow Stew

  

     Greetings! Welcome to this week's Sunday Funday where the topic is Egypt! I love all things travel related so when I saw that the theme was a country I simply had to join. In my area, I am able to find a nice amount of Middle Eastern markets to shop at for any of the hard-to-source items. It makes it so much fun to create. This dish is one I have had on my endless list of dishes to try for YEARS while I was looking for the proper greens to make with this. Molokhia, or Jews Mallow, is the proper green and there isn't anything else quite like it. 

     This dish is a rich stew with lots of aromatic spices and hearty greens. The greens themselves were a unique experience. They cook down very soft and they put off a texture very similar to cooked okra, a bit stringy. The flavor was very similar to cooked spinach. In fact, that would be a great sub if you can't get your hands on the Molokhia. Make sure and chop your spinach very fine before adding it to the cooking liquid and it will taste amazing. If you want to replicate the texture add 1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum to the dish with the spinach and it will add a similar effect. 

     Now let's talk about the rotisserie chicken and the broth. Is that the most traditional way? Well, I have to say it's not. Traditionally the chicken is cooked down with the spices to make a broth and then the chicken is served in the greens. I wanted to speed it up a bit so I created a similar broth with bouillon and the spices. I did add the liquid from the rotisserie chicken because that makes it extra flavorful. I add the leftover frame to, that cooking time isn't enough time to extract enough flavor to make a broth on its own, but it adds a little boost of flavor so I added it. 

     Want to see some other dishes I've made from Egypt? Kar Assly is a delicious pumpkin dessert with a creamy topping that is delicious this time of year. Koshari is the Egyptian national dish and is a combination of the Italian influence on the local cuisine. Ta'emeya is the original falafel and is slightly different than the version I was familiar with and incorporates broad beans as well as garbanzo. Want to see some other great Egyptian dishes cooked by the rest of the group? Check out the links below. 

• Culinary Cam: Hawawshi and Other Egyptian-Inspired Dishes 
• Amy’s Cooking Adventures: Egyptian Borek (Cheese Filled Hand Pies) 
• Palatable Pastime: Baked Chicken with Baharat 
• A Day in the Life on the Farm: Salata Baladi 
• Sneha’s Recipe: Mahalabia
• Karen's Kitchen Stories: Egyptian Sweet Rolls
• Pandemonium Noshery: Molokhia
• Mayuri's Jikoni:Egyptian Cookies

Molokhia Recipe

1 small onion, chopped

10 cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. butter

2 Tbsp. tomato paste

1/4 tsp. coriander

2 c. water

2 chicken bouillon cubes

2 green cardamom pods

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

2 Tbsp. lemon juice

1 (14 oz) bag of frozen Molokhia leaves OR 

    2-3 bunches of greens, finely chopped

1 Rotisserie Chicken, meat removed

Pita or cooked rice to serve

In a large saucepan combine the water, bouillon, bay leaf, cardamom pods, black pepper, juice from the rotisserie chicken, and the chicken frame. Simmer for 20 minutes

Meanwhile, heat the butter in a large skillet and saute the onion until tender. add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes. Turn the heat to high and add the lemon juice, it should bubble and reduce. 

Add the cooked broth through a strainer to remove the solids and add to the pan with the onions and tomato. Add the greens and cook, simmering, for 10 minutes. Add a splash more of lemon juice and serve with the reserved chicken.