Chicken Kabsa recipe famous as Chicken Machboos is a special Arabic Rice and chicken popular all around the Middle East and Saudi Arabian region. Steamed cooked Kabsa rice with oven-baked chicken makes a perfect taste to serve at dinner and lunch. Family favorite kabsa rice that everyone loves.
Looking for Arabic recipes? Check out Chicken Mandi, Shish Tawook, Authentic Falafel, Saudi Albaik Chicken, and Chicken Maqluba.
You will surely love these recipes to add value to your dinner table. Don't forget to watch my peas pulao recipe that I cooked with love for family get together to serve with curry.
Jump to:
What is Kabsa?
Perfectly cooked Arabic Rice and Chicken
It's a Saudi Arabian traditional Kabsa rice dish prepared with Arabic rice and chicken stock by adding flavor of garlic, regional herbs, kabsa spices and tomato paste. Rice cooked in chicken gravy and served with baked chicken and roasted almonds and raisins. Believe me, it's so tempting and extremely delicious Arabian rice recipe perfect for dinner and lunch.
Chicken Kabsa is famous all around Middle eastern region, and many people know the same dish with Chicken Machboos which is the another name of Kabsa.
Why I love this Recipe?
I have tried chicken kabsa many times in different regions at a different restaurant so I can say, every chef brings a different taste but the taste that I personally preferred is homemade. Taaza is a famous fast food chain in the middle eastern region and I love to go there just to eat 'chicken kabsa'. The flavor of sticky rice with chicken and dried lemon makes me crave to have it. Our visit to Dubai Mall is incomplete without having chicken kabsa as my son loves it.
Arabian rice is so famous all around the world, Mandi, Bukhari, Mazbi, Madfoon all are the best rice recipes but the taste of chicken kabsa has unique flavor and aroma that compel to eat again and again.
Kabsa Vs Mandi
Many people who live outside the Arabian region mix Mandi and Kabsa together. Both are Arabic rice but the recipes are totally different. Arabian Kabsa is a 1 pot recipe cooked on a stovetop with meat stock, tomato paste, and dried lemon flavor. While the Mandi meat and rice cooked in an underground oven (tandoor). You can differentiate the rice with color as Mandi is saffron yellow color rice and Kabsa rice is brown in color.
How to Make Kabsa
The making of chicken kabsa is so simple and easy and can be prepared with a handful of ingredients. I personally focus on rice cooking as it should be perfectly cooked.
1) Soak The Rice
The first step is to soak the rice before 30 minutes of cooking. I have used long grain Basmati rice as it yields the best flavor and aroma.
Next, we need chicken! Most people use the big pieces of chicken but here I used the small cutting of chicken as it does not make any difference in taste. Cooking process of big and small pieces of chicken is the same.
2) Cooking Chicken
Start cooking by sautéing the chopped onion with grated ginger and garlic and cooked until the onion become translucent and aromatic. Then add chicken and cook on high heat until chicken changes the color.
3) Kabsa Spice Seasoning
Seasoned with salt, cardamom powder, cinnamon powder, garlic powder and dried lemon. Mixed well with all the spices and add tomato paste and freshly cubed tomatoes and cook on high heat until it forms a thick gravy. Then added water and let it simmer for 20 minutes.
4) Chicken (Baked/Broiled)
After 20 minutes, removed the chicken and bake/broil it in oven for 20 minutes or you can fry on stove top to give it a crispy brown color.
5) Rice Cooking
In the meanwhile, you can add soaked rice in chicken gravy and cook it for 15 to 20 minutes on low medium heat to perfect cook the rice.
6) Nuts Roasting
Roast the Almonds and raisins in a seperate pan to add with rice.
Tip: Soak the almonds in hot water for 20 to 30 minutes then remove the almond skins and roast by adding little olive oil.
7) Assembling (Platter Setting)
Now assembly time comes up which I like most during overall preparation. Set the rice in a plater and top with baked chicken pieces and roasted almonds and raisins.
Set your dinner table and serve this delicious and mouthwatering Chicken Kabsa with Shahta (a special salsa to serve with kabsa rice). So if you are looking Best chicken kabsa near me then it's a time to prepare in your kitchen as homemade is the best!
Kabsa Recipe Video
Here I captured the kabsa recipe video. If you are making chicken kabsa first time then it would be easy to watch the video recipe as it will help to follow the quick steps. My entire kitchen was full of appetizing kabsa aroma the combination of baked chicken and rice. Simple and quick directions might help if you are trying the first time.
Thanks for watching the video! If you enjoy it, please subscribe to our Youtube Channel and hit the bell icon to get video alert.
Easy Tips
- Don't soak the rice for a long time otherwise, it will be mushy after cooking.
- Also, note down the quantity of water in gravy to cook rice. Note down the proper measurement of rice and water. 2 cups of soaked rice will take 4 cups of water.
- Don't cook the chicken in stock for too long otherwise, the chicken will deform.
- Bake the chicken pieces to give color to the chicken not for cooking as the chicken is already cooked in stock.
- In chicken Kabsa, it's preferred to take chicken without skin.
- Don't roast the raisins on high heat otherwise, it will burn.
Serving
Kabsa is served with kebabs and special Kabsa Sauce famous as Machboos sauce named Dakous which is Arabic tomato sauce.
Q & A
Dried lemons have a special taste normally used in Persian and Arabian cuisine. They are made by boiling ripe limes in saltwater, and then sun drying until the insides turn black. The outside color varies from tan to black. In this recipe, I don't have the pure dried lemon so I used the home dried lemon.
In this recipe, I used the half-dried lemon (homemade) as I don't have the fully dried. So you can use lemon juice as an alternative.
Kabsa rice cooked with chicken broth with arabic spices, dried lemon and tomato paste. Roasted/grilled chicken topped with rice that add savory, salty, tangy, metallic and lemony tart flavor with appetizing aroma.
You can use any type of long grain basmati or jasmine rice. If you don't have the choice then use Egyptian misri or bomba. This recipe has been prepared with basmati rice.
Yes, you can! but homemade kabsa spices are best.
Share this recipe with your family and friends. It would be great if you leave your feedback in the comment box. If you make this recipe at home then share a picture with the hashtag #hinzcooking
More Middle Eastern Idea
Kabsa Recipe (Chicken Machboos)
Ingredients
- 250 gms Chicken
- 1.5 cups Soaked Basmati Rice
- 1 tablespoon Oil
- ½ cup Onion chopped
- 1 teaspoon Ginger Grated
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Grated
- 1.5 teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon Cardamom Powder
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper Powder
- ½ teaspoon Cinnamon Powder
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 Dried Lemon
- 1.5 teaspoon Tomato Paste
- 1 cup Fresh Tomato Cubes
- 2 glasses Water
- Kabsa Topping
- 1 tablespoon Almonds boiled, peeled & roasted
- ½ tablespoon Raisins roasted
Instructions
- Soak the basmati rice before 30 minutes of cooking.
- Cut, clean, and wash the Chicken Pieces.
- Add oil in a heated pan.
- Place chopped onion in heated oil and saute for few minutes until the onion becomes translucent.
- Add grated ginger and garlic in onion and saute together.
- As the onion starts to change color then add chicken and cook on high heat.
- Continuous stir until the chicken starts to change color.
- Now season with salt, cardamom powder, cinnamon powder, black pepper, and garlic powder.
- Mix well and cook for few seconds to get rid of the spice rawness.
- Now add tomato paste and mix well.
- Add fresh tomato cubes (peeled skin and deseed).
- Cook well and stir until the tomatoes blend and start forming a gravy.
- Now add water and give it a good mix.
- Cover and cook for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, take out the chicken and keep it in a baking dish to bake.
- Just bake the chicken for 10 minutes at 220 degrees to give it a nice golden color.
- In a gravy, add soaked rice and give it a gentle mix.
- Cover the pan and cook for 20 to 25 minutes until the rice cook on the stovetop.
- In the meanwhile, Boil the almonds and peel the skin.
- Roast the almonds and raisins.
- Pan-fry the shredded carrots and place on rice (optional)
- Now set the platter.
- In a big platter, place the rice and add the chicken on top.
- Topped with roasted almonds and raisins.
Video
Notes
- Don't soak the rice for a long time otherwise, it will be mushy after cooking.
- Also, note down the quantity of water in gravy to cook rice. Note down the proper measurement of rice and water. 2 cups of soaked rice will take 4 cups of water.
- Don't cook the chicken in stock for too long otherwise, the chicken will deform.
- Bake the chicken pieces to give color to the chicken not for cooking as the chicken is already cooked in stock.
- In chicken Kabsa, it's preferred to take chicken without skin.
- Don't roast the raisins on high heat otherwise, it will burn.
Hinz
Arabian Chicken Kabsa one of the best rice recipe to serve in dinner or lunch. Recommended for all taste buds..
alina
Love this recipe of chicken kabsa.. seems like restaurant