A mouth-watering dish that’s just packed with middle eastern flavors — Lebanese Chicken Stew with Vegetables is excellent for weeknight dinners. All in one pan and cooked purely in stove-top — try and see for yourself!
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Don’t even try to identify all the flavors when eating this dish; just enjoy every bite.
It’s smoky, tangy, and slightly sweet — and that’s just what I can identify. 🙂
Serve with some bread to soak all the sauce; expect a deliciously warming chicken dish that will surely awaken all your tastebuds!
IF YOU WANT MORE MIDDLE EASTERN RECIPES, THEN YOU WILL LIKE THESE POSTS!
Ingredients
- Olive oil – use extra virgin olive oil, if possible.
- Chicken – I always use chicken legs for this Lebanese chicken stew recipe.
- Butter – salted or unsalted will word well.
- Garlic – grated; you will add it in the last part of cooking.
- Leek – use only the white and light green part; sliced thinly.
- Carrots – peeled and diced.
- Celery – diced, identical size as the carrots, if possible.
- Tomato paste – just use your favorite brand.
- Lemon – you would only be using a portion of lemon juice for this chicken stew.
- Spices – cinnamon powder, 7-spice, and saffron
- White wine – dry white wine.
- Stock – I generally chicken stock for a deeper flavor of the stewed chicken legs.
- Salt and pepper – salt and ground black pepper for seasoning.
Preparation
Start preparing your chicken stew by seasoning the chicken legs with salt and pepper.
Place a medium or large pan over medium-high heat and add olive oil.
Once the oil is ready, add the chicken (photo 1).
Brown the chicken on all sides, transfer on a plate and set aside.
Add butter into the same pan (photo 2).
Once the butter melts, add chopped leek, carrots, and celery (photo 3).
Mix and cook until the leek has softened, then adjust the heat to medium.
Add cinnamon powder, 7-spice blend, saffron, salt, pepper, and tomato paste (photo 4).
Cook for about five to six minutes, stirring constantly.
Place the chicken back into the pan and pour the white wine into it.
Mix and let the wine reduce.
Pour the stock (photo 5).
Cover the pan with a lid and bring the stewed chicken legs to a boil.
Adjust the heat to medium-low and simmer for about thirty to thirty-five minutes.
Combine the grated garlic with lemon juice and add it to the chicken stew (photo 6).
Mix, and adjust seasoning as desired.
Place the lid back and continue simmering for a couple of minutes.
Transfer your stewed chicken with vegetables into plates and serve!
Helpful tips
- Dry the chicken with kitchen paper before seasoning to ensure they are not wet when you start adding them to the pan.
- Do not overcrowd the pan. Do the browning of the chicken into batches if they don’t all fit at once.
- Feel free to add a bit more olive oil if you feel there is too little fat in the pan, even after the chunks of butter have melted.
- Try not to rush the cooking of the spices and tomato paste.
It’s an important step to get more depth of flavor from them.
- Do not forget to taste and adjust the seasoning of your chicken stew after adding the garlic and lemon juice at the last cooking stage.
Recipe variation
- Stock. Vegetable stock is an excellent alternative if you don’t have chicken stock available.
- Other chicken parts. You can use different chicken parts, as long as you keep the skin and bones in them.
It makes the stew more flavorful than using boneless chicken breasts (as an example).
Looks absolutely tempting, right? Try this chicken stew a try one of these days, and let me know!
IF YOU WANT MORE CHICKEN RECIPES, THEN YOU SHOULD SEE THESE POSTS!
Lebanese Chicken Stew with Vegetables Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken legs (aabout 500 grams)
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 leek, thinly sliced (only the white and light green parts)
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2/3 cup white wine
- 1 & 1/3 cups stock
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1/2 tsp 7-spice blend
- pinch saffron
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 cloves garlic, grated
- salt and pepper, to season
Instructions
- Season the chicken legs with salt and pepper — generously.
- Heat olive oil on a medium or large pan over medium-high heat.
- Once the oil is ready, add the seasoned chicken legs.
- Brown the chicken legs on all sides, transfer them to a plate, and set them aside.
- Add butter into the same pan.
- Once the butter has melted, add chopped leeks, carrots, and celery.
- Mix and cook until the leek turns soft, then adjust the heat to medium.
- Add cinnamon powder, 7-spices, saffron, salt, pepper, and tomato paste.
- Cook for about five to six minutes, stirring constantly.
- Place the chicken back and pour the white wine into it.
- Mix and let the wine reduce.
- Pour the stock.
- Cover the pan with a lid and bring the stewed chicken legs to a boil.
- Adjust the heat to medium-low and simmer for about thirty to thirty-five minutes.
- Combine the garlic with lemon juice and add it to the chicken stew.
- Mix, and adjust seasoning as desired.
- Place the lid back and continue simmering for a couple of minutes.
- Your chicken stew with vegetables is now ready for serving!
Notes
- Cook’s Tip #1: Make sure the pieces of chicken are not wet when you start browning them — use a kitchen towel to dry them before seasoning.
- Cook’s Tip #2: Brown the chicken in batches so as not to overcrowd the pan.
- Cook’s Tip #3: Do not hesitate to add a bit more olive oil if you feel there is too little fat in the pan, even after the chunks of butter have melted.
- Cook’s Tip #4: Try not to rush the cooking of the spices and tomato paste. It’s an important step to get more depth of flavor from them.
- Cook’s Tip #5: Remember to taste and adjust the seasoning of your chicken stew after adding the garlic and lemon juice at the last stage of cooking.
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