Suqaar digaag (chicken and vegetable sauté)

This chicken dish features xawaash, a key Somali spice mix, and bright capsicums, and has a hint of heat thanks to the black pepper and optional jalapeño. Suqaar is cooked covered to keep the meat juicy and moist. Serve with flatbread for a light lunch or over plenty of rice for a more filling dinner.

Suqaar digaag (chicken and vegetable sauté). Credit: Hardie Grant Books / Doaa Elkady

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• Juice of ½ lemon
• 2½ tsp xawaash (see below)
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• ½ tsp paprika
• ⅛ tsp ground black pepper
• 450 g (1 lb) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1½ tbsp (30 ml) olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, halved and sliced
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium jalapeño, halved (optional)
• ¾ cup (12 g) coarsely chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves
• 1 medium red capsicum (bell pepper), sliced
• 1 medium yellow capsicum (bell pepper), sliced

Xawaash (Somali spice mix)

• 1 cup (100 g) whole cumin seeds
• 1 cup (70 g) whole coriander seeds
• ¼ cup (35 g) black peppercorns
• 1 small-to-medium piece of cinnamon bark
• 1½ tbsp green cardamom pods
• 1½ tsp whole cloves
• ¼ cup (30 g) ground turmeric

Instructions

1. For the spice mix, toast the cumin, coriander, peppercorns, cinnamon bark, cardamom pods, and cloves in a medium skillet over medium heat, stirring constantly so the spices don’t burn. The spices are toasted when they have a slightly darker colour and become fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Transfer the toasted spices to a blender or spice grinder and blend until they become a fine powder. Transfer to a bowl and mix in the ground turmeric until it’s fully incorporated and the spice mix is golden brown. Allow to cool completely, then store any un-used xawaash in an airtight container.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the lemon juice, 1 tsp of the xawaash, salt, paprika and pepper. Add the chicken and mix everything together to coat the chicken. Set aside.
4. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until loose. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, or until the onion is softened. Add the garlic and jalapeño and stir for another minute, then add the chicken in a single layer. Allow it to cook undisturbed for 5 minutes, then turn the pieces over and cook for 3 minutes more, until fully cooked through.
5. Add the remaining 1½ tsp xawaash, coriander (cilantro) and capsicum (bell peppers) and stir to combine. Cover the skillet and turn the heat down to medium-low; cook until the pep-pers have softened, 10 to 15 minutes. Serve hot.

This is an edited extract from Soomaaliya by Ifrah F. Ahmed (Hardie Grant Books). Food photography copyright © 2026 by Doaa Elkady

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.