Description
A nourishing Lebanese winter bowl made with freekeh, a fire-roasted grain, simmered in spiced chicken broth with shredded chicken and toasted almonds.
Ingredients
Scale
- For the chicken broth:
- 1 whole chicken or 4 bone-in skin-on chicken thighs
- 1 medium yellow onion, halved
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- 4 whole cloves
- 3 bay leaves
- 6 whole black peppercorns
- 1 carrot, optional
- 8 cups (2 liters) water
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- For the freekeh:
- 1½ cups (270g) cracked freekeh, or whole freekeh
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, or olive oil
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 1½ teaspoons Lebanese 7 spice
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon salt, adjust to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 5–6 cups (1.2–1.4 liters) reserved chicken broth
- For serving:
- ¼ cup blanched slivered almonds, toasted
- ¼ cup pine nuts, toasted (optional)
- Fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Lemon wedges (optional)
Instructions
- Soak the freekeh. Pick through the freekeh on a tray to remove any stones or debris. Rinse under cold water until the water runs clear. Soak in cold water for 30 minutes. Drain thoroughly.
- Make the chicken broth. Place the chicken or thighs, onion, cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, cloves, bay leaves, peppercorns, carrot, and salt in a large pot. Cover with 8 cups of cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, skim off any foam, reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook 45 minutes for thighs or 60–75 minutes for a whole chicken until tender.
- Shred the chicken and strain the broth. Remove the chicken and strain the broth through a fine sieve. Reserve all the strained broth. Shred the meat once cool enough to handle.
- Toast the freekeh. In the same pot, heat butter and olive oil. Add the diced onion and cook until golden. Add the drained freekeh and toast for 2 minutes.
- Add spices and broth. Add 7 spice, cardamom, cinnamon, allspice, turmeric, salt, and black pepper to the freekeh. Stir for 60 seconds. Pour in 5 cups of the reserved broth, bring to a boil, then simmer until grains are tender.
- Add the chicken. Stir the shredded chicken into the soup, taste and adjust seasonings. Simmer for 5 more minutes.
- Toast the nuts and serve. In a pan, melt butter and toast the almonds and pine nuts. Ladle soup into bowls, scatter with nuts and parsley, drizzle with olive oil, and serve with lemon wedges.
Notes
Freekeh soup is an excellent make-ahead recipe. The broth and chicken can be prepared up to 2 days in advance. Always add extra broth when reheating.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 75 minutes
- Category: Soup
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Lebanese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 450
- Sugar: 3g
- Sodium: 700mg
- Fat: 20g
- Saturated Fat: 6g
- Unsaturated Fat: 10g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 50g
- Fiber: 8g
- Protein: 25g
- Cholesterol: 70mg