Easy Wheat Harissa with Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 kg hulled wheat
• 2 kg chicken with bones
• Chicken aromatics: bay leaves, cloves/cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks
• Salt
• 2 tbsp ghee or butter
• Water for cooking the wheat and for boiling the chicken

Method

1. Clean the wheat well and remove stones or black grains if present, and wash the wheat several times
2. Leave the wheat soaked in hot water from the previous night so the grains swell and cooking becomes easier
3. The next day, add 1 tablespoon baking soda to the wheat and leave it soaked for an hour, then wash the wheat well and drain the water
4. Put the wheat in a deep pot to boil it
5. Meanwhile, clean the chicken well, rub it with salt and lemon juice and wash it several times
6. Put the chicken in a second pot with a little water. When you boil the chicken the first time and foam appears remove the chicken from heat, discard the water and add fresh clean water
7. Add bay leaves, cloves, cardamom pods and cinnamon sticks with the chicken and boil it for about an hour until well cooked. Continue boiling the wheat for about 3 hours, adding boiling water whenever the liquid runs low
   Timers: 180 min
8. In the final stage start adding the chicken cooking liquid to the wheat to flavor it, and stir the mixture while pressing the grains against the sides of the pot until they become smooth and you confirm they are fully cooked
9. Make sure the wheat grains are cooked and add hot chicken broth whenever the harissa's liquid decreases
10. When you feel the wheat grains are cooked and have broken down, add the chicken pieces after removing the bones
11. At this stage add butter or ghee or both according to preference
12. Leave the chicken harissa over low heat for about an additional hour to ensure the wheat grains are cooked and broken down and you have a sticky mixture
13. In the final stage add salt. It is not necessary to add spices because the chicken broth contains all the flavors and to preserve the beautiful white color of the chicken harissa