Dajaj Mahshi | Syrian-Style Oven-Roasted Chicken Stuffed with Rice

Rinse the chicken inside and out with cold water, then pat it thoroughly dry with paper towels, including the cavity; moisture in the cavity will water down the filling. Mix the seven-spice blend, salt, black pepper, and lemon juice with the melted butter. Rub the mixture over the chicken, inside and out, and work some under the skin with your fingers.

Melt half of the butter in a large skillet, add the ground meat, and break it up with a spatula. Cook until it releases and then reabsorbs its liquid, and the crumbles separate and brown. Meat that remains moist will make the filling soggy and keep the rice from holding together.

Add the finely chopped onion to the meat and cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add the pine nuts and almonds and stir until golden. Stir in the currants, seven-spice blend, and cinnamon. Toasting the nuts with the meat warms them without making them soft.

Add the rinsed rice to the skillet and stir for 2 minutes. Pour in 400 ml hot water and add the salt. Once it boils, reduce the heat to low and cook until the water is absorbed, about 10 minutes, then remove from the heat. The grains should still be firm, with a white spot in the center when bitten. Let the rice cool completely.

Loosely fill the chicken cavity with the cooled rice; tightly packed rice will expand in the oven and tear the chicken. Close the cavity with a toothpick and tie the legs together with kitchen twine. Spread any remaining rice in the bottom of the roasting pan and set the chicken on top.

Preheat the oven to 190°C / 375°F. Cover the roasting pan tightly with foil and bake on the middle rack. Under the foil, the chicken steams in its own juices and the skin will not brown yet. Add one 200 ml measure of hot water to the pan at this stage to keep the rice on the bottom from drying out.

Remove the foil and baste the chicken several times with the liquid in the pan until the skin is deep golden brown. Insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the thigh without touching bone; do not remove the chicken from the oven until it reaches 74°C / 165°F. The center of the rice filling must also reach at least this temperature; check it with the thermometer inside the cavity as well.