There’s no shortage of data to back up the benefits of sharing meals as a family. Most of us have heard it makes for happier, better adjusted, even more academically successful kids. Yet, supper sometimes gets the shaft. Schedules interfere, or we just get out of the habit and days pass without locking eyeballs over a plate of pasta.
I like to use the transition from the looseness of summer to the routine of fall to get the family meal back on the table. But what to make?
Enter Afghan Braised Chicken, otherwise known as Lawang. It’s the sort of deliciousness that will make you want to sit down to supper. I was so smitten after first eating it in a restaurant, I begged my Afghan friend, Humaira Ghilzai, to teach me to make it (Humaira writes about food, family, politics, and culture over on her blog Afghan Culture Unveiled).
While the dish may not be familiar, it calls for ingredients you can pick up in any grocery store and is creamy and flavorful without being spicy. Chicken legs and thighs get braised in onions, garlic, and spices (turmeric gives it that gorgeous color). Then, a generous amount of yogurt gets stirred in just before serving. The result is a pot of fork-tender chicken napped in creamy yogurt sauce. It’s excellent over rice with a crunchy salad on the side.
Afghan Braised Chicken in Yogurt (Lawang)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups full-fat Greek yogurt
- 3 pounds skinless, bone-in chicken legs and/or thighs
- 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro
- Steamed basmati rice for serving.
Instructions
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Remove the yogurt from the refrigerator while you prepare the chicken.
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Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat in a large, heavy-bottomed pot with a lid. Add the onions and saute until soft and nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and saute another minute or so.
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Add the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil to the onions. Add the chicken and sprinkle the salt over everything. Stir well and drop the heat to low. Cover with a lid and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally to keep the chicken from sticking. Add the black pepper, turmeric and coriander, and stir. Cover and continue to cook on low until the chicken is very tender, another 25 minutes. If the pan begins to go dry during cooking, add water, a couple of tablespoons at a time, as needed.
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Remove the pan from the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes.
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To add the yogurt to the chicken, do as follows:
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Spoon about 1/2 cup of the onion mixture/sauce from the chicken into a small bowl. Spoon half the yogurt into the bowl and stir. Add the remaining yogurt and stir again. Then, add the yogurt mixture to the chicken and slowly stir it until it looks like a uniform, creamy sauce. This process will help prevent the yogurt from separating when added to the chicken. If it does separate after all, not to worry, it will still be delicious (just not quite as pretty).
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Stir in the chopped cilantro and serve with steamed basmati rice.
Comments
08.21.2015 at9:36 AM #
Liz - Meal Makeover Mom
You got me at the Greek yogurt. I love all the flavors in your recipe. It’s a must-try! Pinning now 🙂
08.21.2015 at9:36 AM #
katiemorford
Thanks Liz!
09.03.2015 at9:17 AM #
erin {yummy supper}
Sounds heavenly. I’m a sucker for any chicken with yogurt marinade… yum!
And amen to family dinners – nothing makes me happier than sitting round the table with my gang.
Happy back-to-school btw,
xoxo
E
09.03.2015 at9:17 AM #
katiemorford
Agreed. It’s my favorite part of the day!
09.04.2015 at11:40 AM #
aida mollenkamp
This sounds really interesting, Katie!
09.04.2015 at11:40 AM #
katiemorford
I’m guessing Afghan food may be among very few cuisines you haven’t dipped into, Aida.
02.14.2017 at7:30 AM #
Erika
This recipe is amazing! I was so impressed by the flavors and how easy it came together. I feature this recipe (linking back to you, of course!) in a recent story that I wrote about turmeric for A Healthier Upstate (https://www.ahealthierupstate.org/hidden-gems/hidden-gems-turmeric/) – a health and wellness blog for the upstate New York community. I just wanted to thank you for helping to inspire this story by creating this recipe!
02.14.2017 at7:30 AM #
katiemorford
Hi Erika,
It’s one of my favorite dishes…I’m so glad you liked it. And nicely done on the turmeric story. Thanks for sharing.
02.15.2018 at8:37 PM #
Heather
Made this recipe tonight for me and my picky husband. It was delicious. Served with rice and a side of cucumber tomatoes like you recommended. So glad I found this recipe.
02.15.2018 at8:37 PM #
katiemorford
Wonderful! So glad you enjoyed it.
05.17.2018 at8:15 PM #
Sharon
Wow- This was delicious! It was quite a challenge since I was cooking for one. ( though my dog disagreed)
I had everything I needed on hand except I had to use dried cilantro (reconstituted).
It was a wonderful feast and well worth the extra work for just me!
05.23.2018 at11:20 AM #
katiemorford
Terrific. Glad to know it works with dried cilantro in addition to fresh.
08.27.2018 at7:27 AM #
paw paw yumm
Omg i love it I gotta tell my friends they will love it!! <3
09.11.2019 at6:34 PM #
Amy
I made this tonight, and my family loved it! I used boneless, skinless thighs for ease, but otherwise followed it as is. We ate all the chicken, but my husband asked me to save the leftover sauce for his lunch tomorrow. I am so glad we tried it!!
09.11.2019 at6:34 PM #
katiemorford
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed it.
04.19.2020 at6:50 AM #
Nilofer Fakroddin
Looking forward to trying this and am glad someone made it with boneless skinless thighs since that’s all i have on hand. I have regular whole milk yogurt and non-fat greek yogurt – which would be better to use for this dish? Thank you!
04.19.2020 at6:50 AM #
katiemorford
Use whole milk. Non-fat is more likely to curdle. Let me know how it goes!
04.08.2021 at11:26 AM #
Pravalika
I tried this recipe but when i cook chicken in onions it got water, i was cooking for long time and added whole milk yogurt as per your measurements but it came out “ok” . I think i used too much onion(2medium) which got me more water, may be i should reduce 2 to 1 onion for 1 pound chicken. Other than yogurt did you use any heavy cream ?
04.08.2021 at11:26 AM #
katiemorford
Hi there, In the end, the chicken should be in a yogurt sauce that is more creamy than watery. I don’t think the onion would make it watery. I don’t use cream in this, just Greek yogurt.
06.16.2021 at1:21 PM #
Natalie
This recipe I did In my crock pot, it was delicious. I slowly cooked the chicken in olive oil and onion later adding spice then reduced the heat to add the yogurt, that was at room temp. It was so good and the next two days the left overs kept getting better. Omg. Thank you for posting this recipe, truly appreciated.
06.16.2021 at1:21 PM #
katiemorford
Oooh…what a great idea. Thank you for sharing your method. I will try it this way!