Preheat oven to 300 F.

In a large cooking pot, fry the onions and with 1 teaspoon of cardamom in the vegetable oil, till the onions are golden.

Boil some water and pour it over the fried onions, until the pot is half full.

Add in the tomato paste, chopped tomatoes, dried black lemon, raisins, garlic, cinnamon stick and the remaining cardamom. Add salt according to taste, stir and cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.

Add the chicken pieces and continue to cook over medium heat for 30 minutes. The pot should be covered with an aluminum foil first followed by the pot's lid.

Remove the chicken pieces from broth and transfer to a baking pan to cook in the oven. Keep checking on the chicken so it stays moist. When chicken is done, remove from oven and keep warm.

Use a colander to strain the chicken broth into a bowl. Put the strained ingredients, except the cinnamon stick, back into the cooking pot along with the rice and 3 cups of the strained chicken broth.

Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low right away and cover tightly with an aluminum foil first then the lid of the pot.

After 10 to 15 minutes, you can check on the rice. If the rice is done and there is still some broth, leave over heat for a few more minutes for all broth to evaporate. If it’s too dry, add some broth and continue cooking but do not stir. At the end, the rice should be light and fluffy.

To serve: place the rice in a serving dish and arrange chicken pieces on top of it. Add hot sauce if desired.