Cooking meat on fire was the first and is one of the most popular models of human food preparation. Evolution experts have concluded that the discovery of fire and the cooking process, by reducing the time of eating food and making digestion better, has been a big step in increasing the size and ability of the human brain and has caused the transition of humanity from barbarism to civilization.
Today, in different parts of the world, people have a variety of kebabs, and the direct use of fire in the cooking method is common to all of them. One of the most popular dishes of the East, which Iranians serve at their parties and ceremonies, is Saffron Chicken Barbecue, which is known by the original name of Jooje Kabab or Chelo Jooje when accompanied by rice. In fact, saffron, the precious spice which is provided in different types (Sargol saffron, white Saffron and …) has a significant role in making a very special Iranian food! In this article you will find this delicious food recipe and YES, its glorious history!
Saffron Chicken Barbecue
The chicken pieces should be placed in a special sauce for several hours before grilling – usually, a combination of lemon juice, yogurt, onion, garlic, and pepper so that the chicken can absorb the flavor of these additives. In this article, we will introduce the more royal version of this dish, which uses saffron to prepare its sauce; This popular dish is called Jooje Kabab Zafrani (Saffron marinated chicken).
History of Saffron Chicken Barbecue
Since ancient times, the kebab was rarely prepared and eaten at home. The kings used to eat kebabs in the desert and while hunting, and the ordinary people used to eat them in the bazaar! Even if someone wanted to eat kebab at home, he bought it from outside and brought it home.
With the Iranians living in apartments and the smoke that the barbecue gave off, the kebab gradually became a friend of Iranians in their travels. As red meat became more expensive, it was progressively replaced by chicken meat, and Iranians’ long trips were limited to one-day picnics due to daily life. Today chicken barbecue is a staple food in Iranian travels.
Variety of Marinades
Chicken meat, unlike red meat, has high palatability and is less likely to have bad odors such as rancid smell. On the other hand, it is very crispy, and its texture is easily opened. These things make it possible to flavor it with different ingredients. As we said, the oldest and most basic marinade ingredients for a simple chicken barbecue are lemon juice, yogurt, and onions.
Creative cooks and different cultures usually include the addition of alternative seasonings such as pomegranate paste and various vegetables in the recipe and, in this way, add their signature to the barbecuing chicken.
Adding saffron to food, especially kebabs, has been customary since ancient times, from the Safavid kingdom to the Qajar era, but only for the nobles! Since saffron entered the diet plan of ordinary people, dishes such as barberry saffron pilaf and saffron chicken barbecue have gained many fans.
Saffron Chicken Barbecue Cooking Method
Chelo Jooje Kabab Zaferani is one of the fixed dishes on the menu of Iranian families at parties, ceremonies, and travel. Here we provide you with the method of preparing a meal of saffron chicken barbecue with rice at home.
Saffron Chicken Barbecue ingredients
This amount of ingredients is suitable for cooking food for 4 people.
50 grams of butter
2 large onions
1 medium chicken
A small piece of ginger
100 grams of condensed yogurt
4 tablespoons of liquid oil
Enough salt and black pepper
Brewed saffron 1 tablespoon
6 to 8 tablespoons of lemon juice
How to prepare Saffron Chicken Barbecue
To prepare chicken barbecue, you must first choose the right chicken meat. If you want to make kabab for parties, chicken breast and fillet are the best options because they are easily chopped and can be skewered evenly.
First, cut the onions into slices after removing the skin. If you want, you can use only onion juice to flavor the chicken meat. After washing, chop the chicken into suitable sizes for skewering and add to the dish containing the onions.
Next, add lemon juice, olive oil, infused saffron, condensed yogurt, grated ginger, and some salt and black pepper to the dish containing the onion and chicken meat, and mix the ingredients well until they reach all parts of the chicken meat.
After mixing the ingredients well, put the lid on the container and put it in the refrigerator for 4 hours so that the chicken meat will not only rest a little but also taste better. After this time, remove the chicken meat from the refrigerator and skewer it. For this purpose, put the corresponding parts in a skewer; For example, put the pieces with bones that are cooked later on one skewer and the pieces that are lumpy and uniform on another.
The point of this step is that you must separate the pieces of onion from the pieces of chicken meat and then skewer them. Because the onion pieces left burn very quickly during grilling and affect the taste of the kebab.
After that, you need to prepare the grill. The coals must be evenly lit because raw coals make the barbecue taste smoky. Then arrange the skewers on the grill and rotate continuously until the meat is evenly barbecued. Meanwhile, melt the butter and mix with a small amount of brewed saffron. In the last 2 minutes of cooking, apply butter sauce to the kebabs.
Rubbing the mixture of butter and saffron softens the kebabs and prevents them from drying out. In addition, it positively affects the taste and color of Jooje Kabab. In the end, serve it with bread or rice.
