Ingredients

• 1/2 kg molokheya – mo-lo-khey-a
• 1 rabbit or chicken – ar-nab or firakh
• 1 tbsp fresh garlic, crushed – toom
• 1 tbsp dried coriander, ground – kuz-ba-ra
• 3 tbsp margarine – zib-da
• Salt – malh

Directions

Wash the rabbit or chicken well. Add it whole to a large pan, cover with water and boil until tender. Strain and reserve 3-4 cups of rabbit/chicken soup. Cut rabbit into five pieces or the chicken into quarters.

In a medium skillet, heat 2 tbsp margarine and fry rabbit or chicken pieces until golden.

In a deep pan, heat reserved soup and bring to boil over high heat, add molokheya and bring to a boil with the pan uncovered. Make sure the molokheya only boils once! You can add more soup if texture is too thick.

While the molokheya heats up, melt 1 tbsp margarine in a small skillet. Add 1 tbsp coriander and 1 tbsp garlic and stir until golden brown. Immediately after the mixture turns golden brown, pour the full contents of skillet into the pan with the molokheya. Don’t stir!!

Take off heat and semi- cover pan for 2 minutes.

Stir the molokheya just before serving. Pour the molokheya in a bowl and place the chicken or rabbit separately on a platter. Serve with a side dish of rice.

Notes

* If you use fresh molokheya, wash it well under running water and dry with a clean towel until the water is absorbed. Snip molokhia leaves from the stems. Use a traditional large, rounded double knife [mezza luna] or a food processor to chop the molokheya leaves until they are finely minced. Follow the recipe as above.

* Do not take the molokheya off the heat until you add the garlic and coriander, this is why you have to prepare this while molokheya is being boiled. Also add the garlic and coriander mixture immediately to the molokheya when you take skillet off heat.