Mloukhieh recipe from scratch. A step-by-step video on how to make Mloukhieh or Molokhia), one of the most widely popular dishes in the Middle East and North Africa. Mloukhieh can be prepared out of frozen leaves which are widely used, or of dried leaves.

WHAT IS MOLOKHIA OR MULUKHIYAH ?

Molokhia or Mloukhieh is a soupy stew commonly served in the eastern Mediterranean area, the Levant and North Africa. The leaves are commonly known as Jew’s mallow. Molokhia is a highly nutritious ancient super-green loaded with vitamins and potent antioxidant properties. It is spelled in many various ways based on Arabic.

INGREDIENTS

Whole Chicken 1
Dried jew’s mallow 4 cup
Bay leaves 3
Whole black pepper 1 teaspoons
Ghee or vegetable oil 3 tablespoons
Red onions medium size 2
Garlic fine chopped 4 cloves
Coriander fine chopped ½ cup
Lemon juice 1/4 cup
Salt 1 teaspoon

CONDIMENTS

Vermicelli ½ cup
Jasmine rice 2 cup
Water 3 cups
Diced onions 2
Apple cider vinegar 1 cup
Lebanese pita bread 1
Ghee or vegetable oil 1 tablespoon

EQUIPMENTS

Medium size pot
Mixing bowl
Strainer
Cutting Board
Deboning knife

METHOD OF COOKING 
Step 1

Heat a medium sized pot over medium high heat, add 3 tablespoon of Ghee or vegetable oil. Add the chicken until slightly colored from both sides. Add the salt, black pepper and bay leaves and enough water about 5 cups to cover the chicken. Cook the chicken for about 25 minutes. You’ll need to skim the fat off the broth before you use it. If you leave the fat in it, your recipe will end up with a greasy feel. Once it’s done, remove the chicken pieces, set it aside to cool down and shred or slice the chicken depending on your preferences. “In Lebanon we always shred the chicken”. Let the broth cool for a bit, and strain it through the cheesecloth to get all remaining chicken chunks out and set it aside. 

Step 2

Add the dried Mloukhieh leaves in a large mixing bowl with plenty of water and leave for around 20 minutes to soften them. Remove any stems or yellow leaves. Afterwords, drain the water and squeeze the leaves using your hands to remove any excess water and set it aside. 

Step 3

In a large deep pot on a medium heat, place one tablespoon of ghee or vegetable oil. Add the fine chopped onions and garlic sauté for a bit until soften then add the fine chopped cilantro, the dried molokhia, mix the combination then pour the chicken broth that was set aside. If necessary, add additional water to cover all the molokhia leaves. Let it cook over medium heat for around 20 to 25 minutes. Add lemon juice to the Molokhia stew. Taste for salt and add if needed. Add the shredded chicken to the stew or leave the chicken sliced on the top before serving. 

Step 4

Soak the basmati rice for 20 minutes to remove excess starch, then strain the water from the rice, rinse well until water runs clear. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the vegetable Ghee, once the Ghee is hot, add the vermicelli, and keep stirring constantly until vermicelli turns deep golden brown. It’ll happen fast so keep watching-vermicelli easily burns!

Step 5

Once vermicelli is brown, add the rinsed rice to the pot and stir to combine it evenly with the vermicelli. Add the 3 cups of water. If the water still isn’t covering the top of the rice by an inch, add the extra 1/2 cup. Season generously with salt. Bring rice water to a boil. Turn up heat if you have to, then always COVER THE POT, and turn heat to low so that mixture comes to a low simmer. Let it cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the water has all been absorbed. “Lebanese way is not made it with vermicelli, you can simply remove it”

Step 6

Let’s make the two last essential condiments. Bake on 160 C for 4 minutes the sliced pita square shaped and set it aside. Once it’s done, place the fine chopped onion and apple cider vinegar in a small bowl and mix then set it aside. 

Step 7

It’s time to serve this delicious Mloukhieh recipe from scratch the way my grandmother use to make it. In a plate place the vermicelli rice first topped with the Mloukhieh, chicken sliced and finalize it with the toasted breads and pour some of the onions mixture that we did. Voila!

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

Please let me know how Mloukhieh recipe from scratch turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on Instagram with the hashtag #marcabed

34 replies on “Mloukhieh recipe from scratch”

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