Kuwaiti Chicken and Oat Soup

1Preparation

1. Finely chop the onion and crush the garlic.
2. Pierce the dried lime with a fork in several places so it flavours the broth.

2Cooking

1. Heat the oil in a medium pot and cook the onion until soft and translucent.

   🔥 medium heat⏱ 5 min timer
2. Add the garlic, cardamom, cinnamon and turmeric and stir until fragrant.

   🔥 medium heat⏱ 1 min timer
3. Add the whole chicken breasts and turn them until the outside changes colour.

   🔥 medium heat⏱ 3 min timer
4. Pour in the hot water, add the dried lime, bring to a boil and skim off the foam.

   🔥 high heat⏱ 5 min timer
5. Lower the heat, cover and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and white in the centre when cut.

   🔥 low heat⏱ 20 min timer
6. Lift the chicken out of the pot, shred it into small pieces with two forks, and remove the cinnamon stick.

   ⏱ 3 min timer
7. Add the oats, tomato paste, salt and black pepper to the broth and simmer, stirring, until the oats are soft and the soup thickens.

   🔥 low heat⏱ 15 min timer
8. Return the shredded chicken to the pot and stir until heated through, then remove the dried lime.

   🔥 low heat⏱ 3 min timer

3Serving

1. Ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle with chopped coriander.
2. Serve hot with lemon wedges.

💡 Tips & common mistakes

• Common mistake: leaving the dried lime in until serving or squeezing it — the soup turns bitter. Take it out before serving.
• The oats keep soaking up broth as the soup cools; add hot water when reheating.
• For a smoother soup, use quick oats or pulse regular oats in a blender for a few seconds.

🔁 Substitutions

• Boneless chicken thighs can replace the breasts for a richer flavour.
• If you have no dried lime, add the juice of half a lemon at the end.