Akbar Joojeh Recipe | Persian Fried saffron chicken
Akbar Joojeh Recipe
Akbar Joojeh is one of the types of food in Mazandaran province in Iran. This dish combines small chicken, saffron, pomegranate paste, and butter.
Ingredients for four people | |
Small chicken (1 kg) | 2 |
Ground saffron | ½ tsp |
Medium onion | 2 |
Butter | 100 g |
Pomegranate paste | 1 cup |
Salt | 2 tsp |
Black Pepper | 1 tsp |
Vegetable Oil | 2 cup |
Akbar Joojeh Recipe
Step 1
Wash and dry the chicken, then cut it in half with a knife in the middle. Be careful not to peel the chicken skin.
Step 2
Pour the ground saffron into a small bowl with an ice cube tray and wait for the color to come out.
Step 3
Chop the onion coarsely, put it in a bowl with salt, black pepper, and saffron, and mix.
Step 4
Add the chicken pieces and mix with the other ingredients, then cover the dish and refrigerate for one to several hours.
Step 5
After an hour or so, take the chicken pieces from the refrigerator. Put a saucepan on heat and add vegetable oil, butter, and 1 cup of water.
Step 6
After the butter melts, add the chicken pieces and put the lid on the pot. Fry each side of the chicken for about 30 to 45 minutes.
Step 7
After 30 minutes, remove the pot’s lid and examine the chickens. If the chickens are golden, turn them over and fry the other side for 30 to 45 minutes.
Step 8
After frying the chickens, take them from the pot and place them in a metal grid to remove excess oil. Finally, serve Akbar Joojeh with pomegranate sauce and basmati rice.
Notes
Choosing the right oil
The most suitable oil for frying Akbar Joojeh is frying oil. Since Akbar Joojeh is cooked by deep-frying, if regular cooking oil is used, a lot of oil will be absorbed into the chicken, but frying oil has less absorption.
Therefore, frying oil is more suitable for frying Akbar Joojeh. Another point is that the frying oil can stand a higher temperature, and because of its high smoke point, they are more suitable for frying and therefore does not blacken chicken.