This is the first Libyan recipe on stonedsoup.net; and it is probably the most commonly eaten home cooked dish: imbakbaka. With Italy having a huge influence over Libyan cuisine, this dish has the essence of the classic Italian dish, minestrone. Imbakbaka is really the Libyan version; much less soupy. Chicken pieces are seared then braised in a tomato based broth with a large variety of spices used in a plethora of North African dishes: coriander, cayenne, cumin, caraway, paprika, turmeric, to name a few. Then dry pasta is added, soaking up the remaining broth. This version of imbakbaka is fairly spicy with the cayenne and jalapeños, so adjust accordingly to your spice level.
Prep Time10 minutesmins
Cook Time1 hourhr20 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Libyan
Keyword: Chicken, Libyan, main course, noodles, north african
Servings: 4
Author: Alex Gorgos
Ingredients
4bone in chicken thighs
1lbdry pastashells, penne, gemili
3tbspvegetable oil
1medium onion diced
6garlic cloves minced
3tbsptomato paste
2tspground coriander
1tspcayenne pepper
1tspground caraway seeds
1tsp salt
1/2tsppaprika
1/2tspground cumin
1/2tsp black pepper
1/4tspground turmeric
1pinchground cinnamon
1pinchground nutmeg
1pinchground cloves
1pinchground cardamom
1largejalapeños thinly sliced
8cupsboiling water
Instructions
Heat up the vegetable oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Sauté the onions for 5 minutes.
Add the chicken to the pan. Brown for 5 minutes on each side.
Turn the heat down to medium. Add in the garlic, tomato paste, and all of the spices. Cook for 3 minutes.
Pour in the boiling water. Simmer the chicken for 45 minutes on medium low heat.
Stir in the pasta and jalapeños.
Simmer for 20 minutes until the pasta is cooked through.