Roast the chicken thighs until golden brown on all sides.
550 grams boneless chicken thighs
Transfer the chicken to a plate and keep it aside.
Add the chopped onions and sauté until golden brown with a dash of salt.
1 large onion
Add the walnut paste, pomegranate molasses, water, turmeric powder, salt and pepper.
½ cup pomegranate molasses, 1 cup water, ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon black pepper powder, salt to taste
Drop the chicken pieces into the stew and season with salt.
Add the sugar and bring the stew to boil on medium to high flame.
1 to 2 teaspoons sugar
Reduce the flame to low once it boils. Cover and cook for another 45 minutes to 1 hour stirring every 10 minutes until the stew develops a dark colour.
Transfer to a serving plate and garnish with pomegranate arils. Serve with saffron or turmeric rice or any bread.
Pomegranate arils
Notes
Do not add too much water
You may add a pinch of saffron to the finished Fesenjan stew.
If making saffron rice, you may add a pinch of turmeric just enough to enhance the colour of the dish naturally without altering the taste. Saffron is expensive and it is better to use natural colouring than chemicals. It is okay to take saffron and turmeric together.