Today I'm retrying a recipe I found at SimplyRecipes.com. This time and last time I really didn't follow proportions as carefully as I could. I didn't this time, either. This time I substituted pecans for walnuts as well.

Ingredients

• 2 large yellow onions, chopped, (3 cups)
• 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 8 Tbsp pomegranate molasses
• 1/2 pound pecan halves (about 2 cups)
• 3 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs and/or breasts, trimmed of excess fat, cut into medium size pieces, patted dry and salted
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Method

1. First toast the pecans by spreading them out in a single layer in baking rimmed baking sheet, and toast at 350°F in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Once toasted, remove from heat and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, pulse in a food processor or blender until finely ground.
2. In a large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. When the butter has melted, pat the chicken pieces dry again and place the chicken pieces in the pan, working in batches if necessary to not crowd the pan, and cook until golden brown on all sides. Sprinkle the chicken with salt while they are cooking.
3. Use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove the chicken from the pan, set aside. Add a tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add chopped onions to the pan and sauté until turning golden, stirring on occasion to release the browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
4. Return the chicken pieces to the pan with the onions. Pour 2 cups of chicken stock over the chicken and onions. Stir in the ground walnuts, pomegranate molasses, sugar, and spices. Cover and cook on very low heat for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes or so to prevent the walnuts from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and adjust sugar/salt to taste. At this point the chicken should be fall apart tender.

As you can see, I fudged the timing quite a bit here. Next time I'll have to be a bit more precise.

Notes:

• Pecans seem to cook quicker than walnuts. Next time I won't bake them for more than 8 minutes, and in future recipes I'll consider less.
• This time instead of just using a couple tbsps of canola oil for the browning of the chicken, I used a tbsp of butter and a tbsp of olive oil. The smell was radically different as they cooked. I now suspect the flavor difference will be significant as well.

Comment 21 Apr 2013: It turns out that the Ranch Market on 16th and Roosevelt has a Middle Eastern shelf that has tahini and pomegranate molasses.