Moroccan Lemon Chicken Kebabs with Couscous Pilaf

Grilling is the key for RV cooking sanity. It allows for more counter space and a better teamwork approach. I can marinate the meat the night before. Then, the next day while Matt’s outside cooking the meat, I’m doing whatever else needs to be done for the meal in our small kitchen. Divide and conquer babyyyy!!

This kebab recipe is bomb. It’s from Half Baked Harvest Cookbook by Tieghan Gerard.

Ingredients (Serves 4):

Chicken

• 2 garlic cloves, minced or grated
• 1 (1-inch) knob fresh ginger, peeled and grated (**pro tip** use a plastic spoon to peel the skin off your ginger – makes it so easy!**)
• 2 tablespoons of cilantro
• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika (*I just used regular paprika)
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder (*I just used regular chili powder)
• **I also added 1 teaspoon of turmeric**
• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 1.5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast or tenders, cut into 1-inch pieces

Couscous Pilaf

• 2.5 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1.5 cups couscous
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
• 1/2 cup almonds, chopped and toasted
• 1/4 cup of fresh mint, chopped
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

I have so much respect for Tieghan. Her dishes are beautiful pieces of artwork. Go to her website and see for yourself. In addition to the above ingredients she also includes harissa hummus, avocado puree, olives, cucumbers, arugula, lemon wedges, and fresh naan. These are all to be plated with the kebab dish. Since my goal is to keep things on the simpler side, I decided to omit most of the additional ingredients. I did buy hummus and carrots though which I added to the dish. Also, I love them as a snack for later.

Instructions:

Chicken Marinade: In a sealed container or bag, combine garlic, ginger, cilantro, paprika, cumin, cayenne, chili powder, salt, pepper, olive oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix together and then add chicken making sure it is well coated.

Tiegan says to let marinate for at least 1 hour or up to 12 hours. I actually let mine marinate in the fridge for about 24 hours and it was still delish.

One day later, Matt heated the grill to medium high as I threaded the chicken onto four skewers. Discard the marinade.

While Matt grilled the chicken, I made the couscous.

In a medium sauce pan, heat chicken broth and bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove the heat source and add couscous. Cover with a lid and let sit for 5 minutes.

While waiting for the couscous to cook, I toasted my almonds.

Then, uncover and fluff couscous with a fork.

Add apricots, mint, olive oil, and almonds to the couscous. Make sure to stir it together. Season with salt and pepper.

Matt grilled the kebabs until lightly charred and cooked through. Tieghan estimates this takes about 10 to 12 minutes.

Once everything is completed, I added a smear of hummus to the plate along with some carrots. Finally, add the couscous and kebabs.

Review: This dish is excellent. Matt and I both really enjoyed the flavors. It does require some extra work for prep, but I believe it is worth it, especially if you have a partner on grilling duty. I would absolutely make this again. The one suggestion I would have for the future is to cut back on the amount of couscous used. This recipe seems to make an excessive amount of couscous. Even though we finished the chicken, I still have a medium sized container in the fridge of leftover couscous. To balance the chicken: couscous ratio, maybe try 1 cup of couscous instead of 1.5 cups.

Thanks ya’ll! Send me your favorite grilling recipes please!