Moroccan Chicken Couscous
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This Moroccan Chicken Couscous is super flavorful and healthy loaded with exotic spices but still simple enough to make any night of the week.
Moroccan Chicken Couscous
I’m so excited to share with you today’s recipe because it’s so good, loaded with delicious flavors and best yet, it’s healthy! Today we’re going to Morocco with all these exotic spices, fluffy couscous, and perfectly plump golden raisins. Did I mention you can make it all in one pot?
Believe me when I say that while some of these ingredients may not be what are typically lying around your pantry, they are definitely worth including. Super fragrant and flavorful, satisfying and healthy, and full of complexity and dimension – this dish is stellar. If you loved this recipe, try my Moroccan Style Roast Chicken and Potatoes!
What Is Couscous?
Did you know that couscous is just small beads of pasta made from semolina? It’s very popular in places like Turkey, Greece, Spain, France, and lots of Arabic countries. Traditionally, it is served with meat and vegetable stew. It cooks very quickly, so it’s perfect for a hectic night when you want a quick and healthy dinner.
If you cook couscous properly it’s very light and fluffy. Luckily, in most western supermarkets, couscous is instant, which means it’s been pre-steamed and dried. Otherwise there’s no science to cooking couscous, usually you just follow the package instructions, one cup of boiling water to 3/4 cup of couscous. You can also add some butter or olive oil to it and some salt. And really, that’s all there is to it.
Ingredients In Moroccan Chicken Couscous
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
Moroccan spice blend
- Spices –Â Ground cumin, cinnamon, ginger, paprika, allspice, coriander, turmeric, cayenne pepper, cardamom.
- Seasoning –Â Salt and pepper.
Moroccan couscous
- Moroccan spice blend –Â Listed above, all ground and whisked together thoroughly.
- Chicken –Â Breasts boneless and skinless.
- Olive oil –Â A neutral tasting oil to brown our chicken and veggies in.
- Onion –Â We want a large onion that cooks down well like white or yellow.
- Garlic –Â Fresh garlic is preferred, if jarred is all you have on hand keep in mind that 1 1/2 teaspoons equals 1 fresh clove.
- Raisins –Â Golden raisins as they’re nice and sweet.
- Broth –Â Chicken broth low sodium or no sodium added.
- Chickpeas –Â Just an entire can for some great chew and lots of fiber.
- Tomatoes –Â I used fire roasted tomatoes, they may not be traditional but they pack so much more flavor than regular diced tomatoes.
- Couscous –Â I used pearl couscous today, more information written below.
- Kale –Â Rinsed thoroughly and chopped. No need to massage the kale as we are going to cook it down.
What Is Pearl Couscous?
Pearl couscous, sometimes also called Israeli couscous, can be found anywhere now, I find mine in my local grocery store. Pearl couscous is the same as regular couscous but just a bit bigger and sometimes as you can see here it comes in various colors. Too cool and I thought it would be perfect in this dish. I was right, as usual!
How To Make Moroccan Chicken Couscous
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Preheat the oven:Â Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.
- Create the spice blend:Â Combine all the Moroccan spice blend ingredients together. The recipe should yields about 8 to 9 tsp or about 3 tbsp. Season the chicken breasts with 2 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend thoroughly.
- Brown the chicken:Â In a large Dutch Oven or an oven safe pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the chicken breasts and sear on both sides until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. The chicken will not be cooked through at all, it will just be crispy on the outside. Transfer the chicken from the pot to a plate and set aside.
- Saute the sauteables:Â Add the onion and garlic to the pot and saute for about 3 minutes until onion softens and becomes translucent and garlic is aromatic. add the remaining 1 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend and stir.
- Incorporate the rest of the ingredients: Add the golden raisins, chickpeas, fire roasted tomatoes, chicken broth, couscous and stir well. Gently stir in the kale. Bring to a boil, then add the chicken breasts back.
- Cook the dish:Â Cover the pot with a lid and place in the oven. If your pot doesn’t have a lid, cover with aluminum foil. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
How To Make Your Own Fire Roasted Tomatoes
Can’t find them in the store, or maybe you prefer homemade? Don’t worry I’ve got you covered.
Heat oven to 160C/340F. Put 5-6 tomatoes on a baking sheet with 2 crushed cloves of garlic. Sprinkle with 2 tsp thyme, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, add some salt and pepper and roast for 1 hr. Remove and set aside to cool.
What Else Can I Use In My Moroccan Chicken Couscous?
Feel free to use what you’d like in this dish, it’s a bit of a blank canvas in terms of the flavors you can achieve! So have some fun with it, I won’t stop you.
Veggies
- Mushrooms
- Carrot
- Zucchini
- Spinach
- Swiss chard
- Mustard greens
Meats
- Beef
- Pork
- Sausage
- Turkey
Miscellaneous
- You can use dates or dried apricots instead of raisins! Just dice them up so that they’re a little easier to eat.
- Feel free to use a store bought Moroccan spice blend if you can find it!
- Replace the couscous with any pasta you’d like.
- Feel free to use bone in meat for extra flavor.
Want To Test Out That Tagine?
This is a perfect dish to make in your new tagine! For more information on this cook ware and please refer to this recipe. You can follow the instructions just the same as they’re outlined here.
Want To Make This Dish Ahead?
This recipe will last for 3 – 4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. This dish also freezes well for those of us who like to make our dishes ahead of time, just place in a sturdy freezer bag and it’ll keep for 3 – 4 months. Allow it to thaw fully overnight in the fridge before reheating to temperature on the stove top.
Craving More One Pot Dishes? Try These:
- Hamburger Helper Lasagna
- Beef Ragu Pasta
- Chili Mac And Cheese
- Chicken And Mushroom Tetrazzini
- Turkey Wild Rice Soup
- Cheeseburger Hamburger Helper
- No Peek Chicken Rice Casserole
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Moroccan Chicken Couscous
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp Moroccan spice blend recipe below
- 4 chicken breasts about 1 1/2 lbs, boneless and skinless
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion chopped
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 14 oz chickpeas (1 can) drained and washed
- 14 oz fire roasted tomatoes (1 can)
- 3 cups chicken broth low sodium
- 1 cup pearl couscous dry
- 4 cups kale rinsed and roughly chopped
Moroccan Spice Blend
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp cardamom
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 F degrees.
- Combine all the Moroccan spice blend ingredients together. The recipe should yields about 8 to 9 tsp or about 3 tbsp.
- Season the chicken breasts with 2 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend thoroughly. Use more as preferred.
- In a large Dutch Oven or a oven safe pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot add the chicken breasts and sear on both sides until browned, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. The chicken will not be cooked through at all, it will just be crispy on the outside. Transfer the chicken from the pot to a plate and set aside.
- Add the onion and garlic to the pot and saute for about 3 minutes until onion softens and becomes translucent and garlic is aromatic. add the remaining 1 tbsp of the Moroccan spice blend and stir.
- Add the golden raisins, chickpeas, fire roasted tomatoes, chicken broth, couscous and stir well. Gently stir in the kale. Bring to a boil, then add the chicken breasts back.
- Cover the pot with a lid and place in the oven. If your pot doesn't have a lid, cover with aluminum foil. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid and cook for an additional 30 minutes.
Recipe Notes
Heat oven to 160C/340F. Put 5-6 tomatoes on a baking sheet with 2 crushed cloves of garlic. Sprinkle with 2 tsp thyme, drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, add some salt and pepper and roast for 1 hr. Remove and set aside to cool. You can also use store bought Moroccan spice blend instead of making your own, you can find it on Amazon here. You can also use chicken breasts with skin and bones for additional flavor. Chicken thighs or drumsticks are also fine. I used a large Dutch Oven Braiser that is oven safe. A tagine would also work great with this recipe. This recipe will last for 3 - 4 days in an airtight container in the fridge. This dish also freezes well for those of us who like to make our dishes ahead of time, just place in a sturdy freezer bag and it'll keep for 3 - 4 months. Allow it to thaw fully overnight in the fridge before reheating to temperature on the stove top. Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Wendi Goldman says
Using the lamb, would you follow the same directions?
Jo Cooks Team says
What cut of lamb are you planning on using?
Wendi Goldman says
Can you use lamb in this recipe? If so, what cut of lamb, and how would you adapt it to this recipe?
Jo Cooks Team says
I would use a cut like lamb shoulder that you can slice into smaller pieces.
Kiki says
I made it with quinoa instead of couscous because my son is gluten free. I otherwise followed the recipe exactly. It came out really well! Thanks!
Sara Chung says
We enjoyed this recipe so much. Your recipes never disappoint. The unique flavors were just what I was searching for.
jo says
Thank you, so glad you’re enjoying it.
Madeleine says
Used this recipe (made with chicken thighs) for a lunch for nine ladies all of whom loved the flavour combination and idea of a one pot meal. It was served with salad and whole-wheat bread rolls and a great success. All guests requested the recipe – what more can i say! Thank you!
Joanna Cismaru says
My pleasure!
Carmen says
Made this tonight, it was Delicious!
Celine J DeMeyer says
Love this I subbed spinach for the kale, dried apricots for the raisins and used bone-in chicken thighs, otherwise I followed the recipe. Delicious! And we have leftovers for lunch today! My only criticism is that unlike the stated narrative, it wasn’t simple enough to make any day of the week – at least not for me. Oven time alone is an hour, another half hour of prep and you’d be hard pressed to get this on the table before 7pm on a work day. Worth it for a Sunday dinner though.
Tony Parisi says
Made this dish for dinner with a friend. She absolutely loved it. Very nutritious and flavorful dish.
Joanna Cismaru says
Glad you enjoye dit!
Mary says
I loved this recipe! I may omit the couscous the next time to be more keto friendly so I won’t feel guilty eating it for a couple of days! Thank you so much for sharing it!
Joanna Cismaru says
My pleasure, glad you liked it!
Chiggs says
This is seriously so good.
carolanne says
I doubled this and substituted spinach for kale. My whole family loved it!
Myra McMillan says
This recipe is amazingly delicious! One of my favourite dishes at the moment. Thanks for sharing!
Denise says
This recipe showed up in my email. I knew I had to try it and I wasn’t wrong. Thank you for sharing it with us, it’s absolutely delicious. I made it for my parents and hubby, didn’t even do a test run and everyone loved it. I mean…really loved it! I did use more of the spice mix, mostly because it accidently spilled into the pot…I’ll use the same amount again. What a wonderful blend of flavours…mm mmm mmm.
Joanna Cismaru says
I love hearing this, so glad you liked it!!
teric says
Wow, thank you sooo much for this recipe. It was fabulous! Every single person in my house loved this, even the 3 and 5 year old! What an enjoyable and satisfying meal. The instructions were very easy to follow and the recipe was easy to put together.
Fenne Kieken says
Thanks so much for trying the recipe and sharing your comments. We are so glad you liked it
Hazel MacDonal says
Hi somehow I missed fire roasted tomatoes. How do I make them, and what could I use instead?
Fenne Kieken says
We bought the roasted tomatoes in a can or you can roast tomatoes in your oven if you would like. I did find this which will help you with roasting them on your own.
Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Put the tomatoes on a baking sheet with the garlic and thyme, drizzle over the balsamic vinegar and olive oil, Add some seasoning and roast for 1 hr. Remove and set aside to cool.
Sara @ Last Night's Feast says
This looks delicious! Pinning this right now
Joanna Cismaru says
Thanks Sara!
Deborah says
Hi Jo, I love the recipe. What it might lack in authenticity, it makes up for in great flavours that might entice cooks to try the wonderful cuisine of Morocco. I too am a bit of a spice snob…and my friends know it and are always bringing back items from their travels.
I enjoy your blog so much!
Joanna Cismaru says
Thanks so much, Deborah!
mary says
Wonderful chicken recipe – I love the pearl couscous so much more than the regular! super use of spices!