Musakhan Rolls: Lebanese-Style Sumac Chicken in Flatbread

What musakhan is

Musakhan means "heated up" in Arabic, and many consider it the national dish of Palestine. Chicken and slow-cooked onions, loaded with sumac and pomegranate molasses, are traditionally piled onto open flatbread. This roll version wraps the same filling into individual pieces, which makes it far easier to serve and eat at a table than the open original.

Quick facts

• Makes: about 12 rolls
• Prep: 20 minutes
• Cook: 1 hour
• What you need from Beirut Spice Co: sumac, about four tablespoons go into the filling, with more for dusting over the top. Sumac is the dish.

Ingredients

Chicken

• Chicken breasts (quantity not specified in the source recipe)
• Water to cover
• Bay leaves
• Peppercorns
• Coarse salt

Filling

• Purple onions, sliced into half-moons
• Olive oil (amount not specified in the source recipe)
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
• 4 tablespoons sumac, divided
• Pomegranate molasses (amount not specified in the source recipe)
• 1/4 cup of the chicken broth from poaching

To roll

• Markouk bread, or Arabic bread if you cannot find it
• Olive oil, for the pan and for brushing

To garnish and serve

• Toum or garlic dip
• Sumac
• Chopped parsley
• Fresh pomegranate seeds
• Pomegranate molasses

Method

1. Prep. Slice the onions into half-moons and chop the parsley finely.
2. Ready the bread. Cut the bread into wedges, like pizza slices, and put them back in their bag so they do not dry out and stiffen.
3. Poach the chicken. Bring a pot of water to a simmer with the bay leaves, peppercorns and coarse salt. Add the chicken breasts and simmer on medium for 20 minutes.
4. Shred. Lift out the chicken and shred it. Keep the water: it is now chicken broth, and you will need a quarter cup of it shortly.
5. Cook the onions. Heat a deep-edged skillet with the olive oil and cook the onions on low heat until translucent.
6. Season. Add the salt, pepper and 2 tablespoons of the sumac. Cook 2 minutes more.
7. Add the chicken. Add the shredded chicken, the remaining 2 tablespoons of sumac, the pomegranate molasses and the broth. Cook together for 5 minutes on low.
8. Heat the oven. Set it to 350°F (175°C) and oil the bottom of a baking dish.
9. Roll. Lay out a bread wedge and put a small amount of filling near the wide end. Fold in the corners first, then roll it up. Place it in the dish seam-side down so it holds.
10. Bake. Once the dish is full, brush the tops with more oil and bake 20 minutes, until crisp and golden.
11. Serve. Garnish with parsley, pomegranate seeds, a drizzle of pomegranate molasses and a dusting of sumac. Serve with toum or garlic dip on the side.

Notes from the kitchen

• Go low and slow on the onions. They should melt, not brown. That sweetness against the sour sumac is the whole dish.
• Do not overfill the rolls. A little filling rolls tight and crisps evenly; a lot splits the bread.
• The leftover poaching broth is a bonus. Freeze what is left for the next soup.
• To make ahead, roll the rolls in the morning, cover, and bake when people arrive.

The sumac behind the recipe

The dish leans entirely on sumac for its tang, used both in the filling and as a finishing dust. Beirut Spice Co. sells the sumac used in this recipe, sourced from Lebanon.