The Recipe of Ibn-e-Al Mehdi's Maghmoom

Take a plump hen, dismember it and put it in a pot, and add coriander of one dirham's weight, half a dirham of pepper and the same of cinnamon, and of ginger, galingale, lavender and cloves a quarter dirham each, three û qiyas of vinegar, two ûqiyas of pressed onion juice, an ûqiya of cilantro juice, an ûqiya of murri naqî', and four ûqiyas of fresh oil. Mix all this in a pot with some rosewater, cover it with a flatbread and put a carefully made lid over the mouth of the pot. Place this in the oven over a moderate fire and leave it until it is cooked. Then take it out and leave it a little. Let it cool and invert it onto a clean dish and present it; it is remarkable.

1 chicken (2-3 lb)
1 T (4 g) coriander
1 t (2 g) pepper
1 1/2 t (2 g) cinnamon
1/2 t (1 g) ginger
1/2 t (1 g) galingale
~1 T (1 g) dried lavender blossoms ground in a mortar
1/2 t (1 g) cloves
3/8 c (3 oz) vinegar
2 T (1 oz) coriander juice = 2 T water +~1 oz green coriander
1/4 c (2 oz) onion juice
2 T (1 oz) murri
1/2 c (4 oz) olive oil
2 t rosewater
2 medium pita breads

120 dirhem = 16 oz = 1 pt; 7.5 dirhem = 1 oz; 1 dirham = approx 3-4 grams.

Chop coriander, then grind in electric spice grinder with 2 T water and strain juice through a cloth to make 2 T+ of coriander juice. Mix everything in pot, put in chicken. Put two medium pita on top, put on lid, bake at 350deg. about 1 hour, let settle about 15 minutes, invert into a bowl, and serve. Would be good over rice or bread. Note: The spices are all ground.