[jenny_islander]

OK, here's the recipe for the other chicken recipe I have redacted already. It's called "The Green Dish which Umm Hakima Taught." "Umm Hakima" is a child-name, an honorific that is still used in parts of the Islamic world today. When you become a parent, you are addressed as "Umm [child's name]" (for a mother) or "Ibn [child's name]" (for a father). A Muslim correspondent tells me that it is a source of immense pride and makes a person feel officially adult. You may get your child-name from your firstborn or from your firstborn child of the same sex; Hakima is a girl's name. So we might say, "Hakima's Mother's Green Chicken."

Rinse and pat dry:

3 1/2 pounds Cornish game hen, cut up, or dark meat cuts from a larger chicken; do not skin

Put into a pot and cover with:

Cold water

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer just until done, about 30 minutes (check after 20 minutes). Remove chicken pieces and reserve broth for another use. Fill a large skillet 1/4 inch deep with:

Olive oil

Heat on Medium until shimmering and fragrant. Brown the cooked chicken pieces on all sides until the skin is golden and crisp, moving the pieces frequently to prevent sticking. Meanwhile, stir to combine in a bowl:

Tender leaves of 1 or 2 bunches cilantro, chopped--remember, this dish has to be green!
1 small onion, minced
1/2 teaspoon bitter outer layer of onion (the part that is somewhat leathery), minced*
1/4 cup light-tasting soy sauce**
Ground black pepper to taste
Caraway seed to taste
1/2 cup cilantro juice
Peeled whole garlic cloves, to taste
Crumbled dried thyme, to taste
1 cup water

Pour this mixture over the cooked chicken. Cook and stir until it comes to a boil. Break into the pan:

3 eggs

Cook and stir until eggs are scrambled and sauce has reduced by more than half. Serve with rice or flatbread. This is a very savory dish that tastes a lot like a good Chinese stir-fry.


*The original recipe calls for rue, a bitter herb. Scientific testing has shown rue to be poisonous if taken in quantity, but mace and nutmeg are also poisonous if taken in quantity. For liability reasons, I'm leaving it out of the recipe (also I can't find any rue).
**Medieval Moorish cookery used a sauce called murri, which was made from barley in almost exactly the same way as soy sauce is made from soybeans, although the two were invented independently. Nobody has made it commercially for hundreds of years. Modern experiments with the recipe have produced something that tastes very much like light soy sauce, so I used that here. Look for a sauce that is made of just soybeans, salt, and possibly wheat.