Skillet Chicken and Pearl Couscous With Moroccan Spices

By Colu Henry

Total Time: 1 hour
Rating: 5(2,069)
Notes: Read community notes

This one-pan meal, which is inspired by the tagines of North Africa, is prepared in a deep skillet or Dutch oven instead of the traditional clay pot. Briefly marinate bone-in chicken thighs in lime juice, garlic, cumin and olive oil, then brown and set aside. (If you’re short on time, skip the marinade; simply add the ground cumin when you’re toasting the other spices in the chicken fat.) Stir in harissa, cinnamon and turmeric, toast until fragrant, then add quick-cooking pearl couscous and the chicken, so everything finishes cooking together. Top the finished dish with a fistful of roughly chopped tender herbs and lime zest for a jolt of brightness.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

2½pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 6 thighs)
1teaspoon fresh lime zest plus ¼ cup juice (from 2 limes)
3tablespoons olive oil
3large garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1½teaspoons ground cumin
Kosher salt and black pepper
2tablespoons grapeseed or canola oil
1large leek, trimmed, rinsed of grit then thinly sliced into rings (about 1½ cups), or 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1tablespoon harissa paste, tomato paste or chile-garlic sauce
1teaspoon ground turmeric
½teaspoon ground cinnamon
1¼cups pearl couscous or orzo
1½cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
½cup roughly chopped mixed tender herbs such as parsley, cilantro and mint (optional)

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Step 1
In a large bowl, combine the chicken thighs, lime juice, olive oil, garlic and cumin. Season well with salt and pepper and stir together until the chicken is well coated in the marinade; set aside at room temperature for 25 to 30 minutes.
Step 2
In a deep, 12-inch skillet or Dutch oven with a lid, heat the grapeseed or canola oil over medium-high. When it shimmers, lift the chicken out of the marinade, allowing any excess liquid to drip back into the bowl, then add the chicken to the skillet, skin-side down. Working in batches, if necessary, to avoid crowding the pan, cook until the chicken is well browned on both sides, about 6 minutes per side. Remove and set aside on a plate.
Step 3
Reduce heat to medium, add the leek and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping up any brown bits that have formed on the bottom of the pan. Stir in the harissa paste, turmeric and cinnamon, and cook until lightly toasted, 1 to 2 minutes. Season well with salt.
Step 4
Add the couscous to the pan and stir until well coated in the spiced leek oil. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low and add the chicken back to the pan, skin-side up, along with any accumulated juices. Cover and simmer until the couscous is al dente and the chicken is cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. If you’re lucky, some of the couscous may slightly stick to the bottom of the pan, creating well-seasoned crispy bites.
Step 5
Remove from the heat and remove the lid. Scatter with the herbs, if using, and the lime zest, then serve from the pan.

Tip

You can marinate the chicken a day in advance if you want to get ahead of the game, just make sure to bring the chicken to room temperature before you begin cooking.

Ratings

5 out of 5

2,069 user ratings

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Cooking Notes

Ziggy4 years ago

Halved this as I'm cooking for one. Had some orzo that I wanted to use up, so that went in place of the couscous. Used water instead of stock, onion instead of leek, and lemon instead of lime, as the author recommended on Instagram—all serviceable substitutions. And when I went to add the cinnamon, I accidentally dropped the container into the pot, so that was accidentally quadrupled (octupled?)! But I just loved the result, so, if I make this again, that mistake will be repeated.

nd4 years ago

can you use quinoa or farro instead of couscous?

Rubi D.4 years ago

I only had boneless skinless thighs and this still turned out amazing!

Rebecca3 years ago

I love this recipe. I add chick peas to the cous cous and golden raisins for the last few minutes...so delicious. And great leftovers. I need more savory cinnamon in my life!

Chris4 years ago

Followed this recipe to a T. Agree that the chicken may need to be cooked longer (and perhaps slightly lower temp if looking to avoid excessive blackening of the skin. End result was delicious be incredibly greasy. Any thoughts on avoiding the latter issue?

Ellen4 years ago

After cooking the chicken and before cooking the leek/onion, I used a paper towel to sop up most of the oil in the pan. It was delicious and not greasy at all.

CD4 years ago

Loved this recipe. Easy to prepare and very delicious. Added sweet potatoes to this and sauteed them a little in the chicken fat before adding the leeks. Turned out great!

Nora3 years ago

Add raisins/dates and almonds/pine nuts

Isabelle Mulder4 years ago

Great flavor! The whole crew loved it. The chicken definitely needs more time to cook through - next time we'll cook it initially for about 10 mins instead of 6, and on lower heat to avoid burning the skin.

Nina3 years ago

This is my new favorite recipe. I've made it maybe four times in the past month, because it's so easy! I've done it with both lemon and lime, but I think the lime has the best flavor.

BG4 years ago

Added golden raisins at the end which I highly recommend. And as others have said, cook the chicken on medium heat for longer or it will be under cooked.

Jessica3 years ago

Added frozen peas after the stock came to a boil....perfect for a one pot meal!

rj_gray3 years ago

Marinade the flesh side only. S P only on the skin. Fry skin until crisp. Add 2-3 garlic cloves in with the leek.

Lisa3 years ago

Delicious! Will definitely make this again and again! Made it exactly as written with the exception of adding 1/2c more broth and cooking an extra 15 mins.

Daphnee3 years ago

I would agree with everyone saying there should be less chicken more couscous. Other than that, this recipe is insanely delicious and super easy. Made it with pearl couscous, leak and harissa.

AJ1 week ago

May have added too much harrisa paste LOL. Also, removed some of the oil after chicken was browned. Added zucchini . Loved it.

Martar2 weeks ago

Finishing with lots of herbs and squeezes from lime wedges helped this ALOT for me. Otherwise, quite greasy! And orzo (used 1.5c instead of 1.25c) done way before chicken so got that burnt layer on the bottom. Next time, will try skinless boneless thighs. Used 1 heaping tsp of turmeric and 1 tsp of cinnamon and still not flavorful enough for me. Will try more. How do restaurants get such strong and robust flavors in their food??

Abbi1 month ago

Definitely agree that this dish needs more couscous for this amount of chicken maybe 1 3/4 - 2 cups. Also used boneless thighs which worked well.

Yana1 month ago

The flavors are great (I added dates), but the instructions should have been reconsidered. As others have said, the chicken is not cooked by the time the couscous is. Frying the chicken at that temp almost burned everything because of the marinade (can’t get it all out), so I had to pour in the broth quickly. Because I had to wait for the chicken to finish cooking the couscous burned and created a thick layer on the bottom of my Dutch oven. I think I’ll cook the couscous separately next time.

Cindy2 months ago

Followed the recipe ingredients exactly but drained chicken fat and cooked chicken longer at step two. Fabulous chicken dish!,!!

SDM2 months ago

My dish had a sour test… maybe the cumin or the garlic burning when I cooked the chicken. I added some honey which helped.

Joey3 months ago

Love this!

BQMiller3 months ago

Used boneless skinless thighs and the chile garlic sauce and farro (bc it was all I had). Made 1.5 times the farro and sauce and it was a major crowdpleaser. Was even better as leftovers. Will definitely make again.

Larry3 months ago

This is a keeper. Doubled the cumin and cinnamon. Added a cup of diced carrots, and about a cup of mushrooms. Used Only a tsp of Harissa - next time I’ll double that. Had only 1.5 lbs of boneless thighs but it was fine.

Hannah4 months ago

This was so flavorful and rich! Especially the little crispy couscous bits from the bottom of the pan. Made with about 1.5 lbs thighs instead of 2.5 lbs thighs and that definitely felt like the right ratio given that I followed all other measurements to the letter. Used onions instead of leeks, topped it off with a dollop of Greek yogurt at the end. YUM!

lynda5 months ago

This was excellent. I followed the whole recipe as written, only adding a whole tsp. Of cinnamon. I got a new Le Creuset pot on sale and using this for the maiden voyage. I will make this again!

Lydia6 months ago

Try 1/4 tsp cinnamon next time

big Hit6 months ago

By mistake I added 2 teaspoons smoked paprika 1 teaspoon ground turmeric ¾ teaspoon cumin ½ teaspoon hot smoked paprika ½ teaspoon ground ginger ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves I also used 1 tsp. ground cinnamon and lemon juice and rind vs. lime. Very tasty with a good kick!

Lia7 months ago

Added golden raisins and toasted almonds and pine nuts at the end which was delicious. Added chopped orange bell pepper after leeks had cooked for a minute, gives a nice sweet crunch. Make sure to sop up liquid from chicken with a paper towel as it cooks so that it can brown.

KR7 months ago

Chicken was no where close to done. Thankfully I had the oven on for something else and was able to put the chicken in the oven to finish it off. If I make it again, I’ll be using boneless thighs which will finish with the couscous as designed in the recipe.

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