Name: Fruity Baked Chicken (Al-Bustaniyya)
Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings
Cuisine: Iraqi
Ingredients: ½ teaspoon ginger; 6 each of dried apricots, prunes, and dried figs, chopped; 1 tablespoon pomegranate syrup; 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 teaspoon crushed coriander seeds; ½ cup (3 oz/85 g) scallion/spring onion, chopped, including the green part; 10 green or black olives, stones removed; ¼ teaspoon cardamom; ½ teaspoon grated orange peel; ½ cup (2 oz/60 g) toasted walnuts, broken into pieces or crushed; 1 cup (250 ml) orange juice; ¼ teaspoon black pepper; 2 lbs (900 g) skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into finger-like strips; ½ teaspoon whole aniseeds; 1 teaspoon salt

Preparation info

Makes
4 to 6
servings

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Delights from the Garden of Eden

By Nawal Nasrallah

Published 2019

About

Bustaniyyat are medieval Abbasid dishes, which incorporate bustan ‘orchard’ produce, most probably picked and cooked in the orchards themselves. This recipe is inspired by bustaniyya, the specialty of Abu Sameen (literally ‘father of the fat one’), who was the palace chef of Abbasid Caliph al-Wathiq (d.847). In Abu Sameen’s version, chicken breasts were sliced into finger-like strips, and juice of sour green plums was added to them. When brought to a boil, spices, oil,