Chicken Msakhan Rolls
I can’t even begin to describe the euphoric taste of amazing olive oil coating sumac, onions and chicken. The flavor literally widens your eyes as you take a bite and you’ll find yourself loudly “mmmmm-ing” as you throw the rest of the roll in your mouth quickly so as not to sacrifice a drop of oily, sumacy, oniony, chicken.
Msakhan is a traditional Palestinian dish that is made with roasted chickens and plenty of sumac, Palestinian olive oil and onions placed overtop of freshly baked taboon bread so that the bread soaks up all of the amazing juices of the chicken, sumac and olive oil. This traditional Palestinian dish is hearty and comforting and delicious. It sings an ode to Palestine. a land with the richest olive oil from olive trees thousands of years old. I love msakhan so much that when i learned an easier way to make msakhan with a quick hack i felt like i had won the lottery. An easy and quick way to make msakhan that was perfect for quick dinners and even more perfect for parties. A total win.
Here’s the thing with this recipe, my recipe says to boil chicken breasts and then shred the chicken to use in the rolls. If you only have chicken breasts on hand, this is the best technique. HOWEVER, if you happen to have a rotisserie chicken, just shred that bad boy up and use the meat in its place. if you have leftover roasted chicken, shred it up and use it…. You get the picture. We pretty much need shredded chicken for this dish, if you’ve got leftovers to use up, by all means, use them here! This is the perfect vehicle for leftover chicken you can shred!
One more note on the Msakhan rolls. If you’re looking at this recipe and a bit overwhelmed by how much olive oil goes into it and quickly deciding that you’re going to reduce the oil to a few tbsp, i mean, go for it, but just know that the major pillar of this dish is the olive oil and you will be absolutely sacrificing on taste if you do so. My advice is to just suck it up for the sake of culture, tradition and taste and just use good good olive oil and call it a way to get your good fats in. There. I solved your problem.
I love serving these rolls with plenty of fresh veggies like radishes, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, peppers, pickled veggies and a pickled and fermented mango dip called Amba widely found in the middle east and southeast Asia, and obviously a large vat of cold plain yogurt to dip these little guys in and inhale. This recipe will soon become a quick favorite for you and your family and i promise you’ll find this a regular rotation in your meal plans!
Give this recipe a try! Share your comments and some love. If you make this recipe and share it on social media, tag it with the hashtag #hungrilyhomemaderecipe
Total Time: 45 minutes
Yield: 4-5 adult servings
Ingredients:
1. 2 chicken breasts
2. 2 bay leaves
3. 1 cinnamon stick
4. 1/2 cup good quality olive oil
5. 3 large onions, sliced into long thin strips
6. 1/4 cup sumac
7. 2 tsp salt
8. 10 -11 medium sized tortillas
Method:
1. Place a large pot with cold water over a medium-high flame and add the chicken breasts to the pot of cold water along with the cinnamon stick and bay leaves. Allow the chicken to boil in the water for 15-20 minutes or until completely cooked through.
2. While the chicken is boiling, in a large skillet, heat the olive oil (but before adding it remove 3 tbsp from it and set it aside for brushing on the rolls before baking.) and add the 3 sliced onions to the pan. Saute over medium heat until the onions become wilted. Turn the heat stove off once the onions have wilted and become translucent.
3. Once the chicken has cooked through, remove from the pot of boiling water and once cool enough to handle, shred the chicken into thin strips with your hands and add it to the skillet with onions and olive oil.
4. Turn the heat under the skillet back on and add the sumac and salt overtop the onions and chicken. Give a good mix to incorporate all of the ingredients and saute over a medium-low heat for 5 minutes until well combined.
5. Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
6. In a large bowl, add cold water half way to the top.
7. Begin to roll the Msakhan rolls by very quickly and gently dipping each tortilla into the bowl of cold water just until it has slightly moistened. On a cutting board, place the wet tortilla and put approximately 1/2 cup of chicken, onion and sumac filling on the tortilla. Roll the tortilla tightly and tuck both ends in to seal the filling in. The tortilla will look like a cigar once fully rolled.
8. Grease a baking dish or oven pan large enough to fit all of the Msakhan rolls and lay them side by side.
9. Brush the remaining 3 tbsp of olive oil overtop the rolls with a brush ensuring to coat well with olive oil.
10. Place the baking dish or pan in the oven to bake for 20 minutes or until the tops are crispy and golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve hot with cold plain yogurt, amba, fresh veggies and pickled veggies.
