Tbiet (stuffed Chicken And Chicken Skin)
Instructions
Carefully skin the chicken, taking care not to tear the skin and leaving the wings together with the skin. This is a difficult process, and the best way to do it is to begin from
the neck (which should be removed, if it is still attached). Using a sharp knife, cut
repicesbyrachel.comthrough the cartilage of the joint between each wing and the body of the chicken. Once
the wings are separated from the body of the chicken, gradually peel away the skin from
the underlying flesh, moving further and further down the body of the chicken. Use a
sharp boning or pairing knife to separate the skin in those places where it is firmly attached to the meat, for example, down the back of the chicken. Upon reaching the
thighs, separate the skin from the thighs, and then wrap a closed hand around the base
of the leg and slowly pull outward, using considerable force, toward the foot of the
drumstick. The skin should peel away as it turns inside out. At the very bottom of the
chicken, toward the back of the bottom opening, is a fatty triangular tail. When completing the removal of the skin from the chicken, leave that triangular tail attached to the
skin. (Incidentally, the Iraqi Catholics used a term of great endearment to refer to that
quaint triangle: khashmil-Papa the nose of the Pope.)
When the chicken is completely skinned, turn the skin inside out and wash it well in a
bowl of water. Pull any loose fat and transparent membranes from the inside of the
skin. After several rinses, lay the skin on a board (still inside-out). Cut off and discard
the very tips of the skin on the leg (by the foot), which is usually yellowish in color and
tough. Sprinkle teaspoon of Bharat over the skin. Rub the Bharat into the skin, using
the coarseness of the spices to sand away some more of the membranes and fat. Turn
the skin over and do the same on the other side, with another teaspoon of Bharat.
Remove any excess Bharat and let the skin sit for a while, during which the hashwa
may be prepared. Also rinse the skinned chicken well, both the inside cavity and the
outside. Take teaspoon of Bharat and rub it thoroughly throughout the inner cavity of
the chicken.
Hashwa:
Wash and soak 1 cups of the rice (leaving the other 2 cups aside) in water for at least
hour. After soaking, drain the rice so that no water remains and put the rice in a large
mixing bowl. Add the diced meat, the diced tomatoes (not the other small tomato), 1
teaspoon salt, teaspoon pepper, and teaspoon cayenne. Mix everything together.
Add 3 tablespoons of Bharat and mix well. If the Bharat is weak, you may need to add
more, but too much will make the hashwa bitter.
Filling and Cooking:
Using a needle and white thread (not doubled up), sew closed either the top (neck) or
bottom opening of the chicken. Also sew closed any tears or holes in the skin there
should be few of these, if a good chicken was selected. Using a tablespoon or serving
spoon, scoop the hashwa into the chicken skin until the skin is full. (Do not force
hashwa into the leg openings.) There should be enough hashwa in the skin so that it
has some integrity, but there must be some room for expansion of the rice during cooking. The intention is that when the hashwa expands, the skin will blow up and appear to
be like a whole chicken. When enough hashwa has been stuffed into the skin, sew
closed the remaining opening. Lay the skin on its stomach, and bring the loose skin of
the legs over the back and toward each other. Sew the two flaps together (it is likely the
repicesbyrachel.comflaps are too short to reach each other, in which case it is fine to have the thread strung
across a portion of the back, between the ends of the leg flaps). Using a tablespoon or
serving spoon, scoop hashwa into the inner cavity of the chicken (use the bottom opening). Fill the cavity completely it is fine to stuff it well and then pinch together the
two fleshy flaps on either side of the bottom opening. Make a few passes with needle
and thread through the flaps so that they remain closed.
Use a very large, thick-walled, non-stick pot. Dice the onion finely and add it to pot, together with 2 tablespoons oil, teaspoon pepper, and teaspoon cayenne. Saut on
medium flame until the onions are soft and golden. Dice the small tomato and add that
to the pot, sauting further for a brief time. Place the stuffed skin in the pot on its stomach, and place the chicken in the pot on its side. Leave on medium flame, gently agitating the pots contents every once and a while, until the chicken and the skin brown. The
skin should turn a rich brown color on its stomach, but not too dark. Carefully turn the
skin over so that it sits on its back (it is now fragile and can tear, so do this gently), and
turn the chicken over so it sits on its other side. Dissolve 2 teaspoons tomato paste in 2
cups of water. When the skin and chicken have had an opportunity to brown lightly, add
the water and tomato paste to the pot. Cover, bring to boil, and lower flame to low.
Cook for 45 minutes. Every so often, perforate the skin with a fork having long and thin
teeth (do this twice during the time the skin is cooking). After 45 minutes, test to make
sure the hashwa is cooked poke a fork into the skin to check that the hashwa is soft.
When it is cooked, shut off flame, whether or not all the liquid has evaporated. Allow to
cool and refrigerate until at least a few hours before ready to serve.
Cooking the Rice and Serving:
Wash and soak 2 cups of rice for at least 15 minutes. With utmost gentleness, remove
the chicken from the pot and place it in a plate. (Unless the pot is big enough to do the
following without removing the chicken.) Dissolve 1 teaspoon tomato paste in 2 cups of
water. However, if there is liquid remaining in the pot, reduce the additional water by the
same amount. Slide skin to one side of pot and add the water and tomato paste to the
other side. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Set on medium flame, cover, and bring to boil. Drain
rice, add it to the boiling liquid, stir, and cover pot. When the liquid evaporates, lower
flame to very low. After 15 minutes, check rice to make sure it is ready. If so, push it
aside slightly and place chicken back in pot so that is sits on its back. (Or, if the pot is
big enough and the chicken was not removed, simple turn it very gently so that it sits on
its back.) Remove the thread from the flaps of the chicken (but do not remove any
thread from the skin). Set pot on top of heat diffuser or on electric element at very low
heat and leave for at least an hour.
When ready to serve, invert over a large serving platter. If the chicken has been sitting
on top of the rice, remove the chicken before inverting pot and then set chicken next to
hkaka cake. Before inverting pot, make sure to loosen the contents with a spatula
tbeet tends to stick even to non-stick surfaces and must first be freed from any adhesion
or the skin will tear when the pot is inverted. At the dinner or lunch table, the server
should ensure that each guest is given a little taste from each component of the tbeet:
repicesbyrachel.comThe rich, flavorful exterior rice with hkaka, the chicken and its stuffing, and the crisp
chicken skin and its stuffing. Take care not to allow any thread to make its way onto a
guests plate.
