Moroccan Chicken & Lentils

The flavors of Moroccan food are one of my favorite. I love the earthy, subtle spiciness of the spice combinations. It’s just all good. I don’t know that I’ve ever met a Moroccan dish that I did not like.

However, until last week, I had never attempted to make a full Moroccan dish. I have made plenty of Moroccan inspired sides, salads and appetizers though. But I have been waiting to tackle a main dish for a while. I am so glad I finally did.

The key element of this meal is the spice blend. This one is very subtle. I’d actually prefer it a bit spicier, but sometimes it’s good to remember I’m not going for only myself. As it was, everyone loved this dish.

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Moroccan Chicken & Lentils

  • 1 T. paprika
  • 2 t. cumin
  • 2 t. coriander
  • 1 t. ground ginger
  • 1/2 t. turmeric
  • 1/2 t. black pepper
  • 2 T. olive oil
  • 1 large onion, sliced thin
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 – 1 1/2 lb. chicken breasts
  • 1/2 lb. baby carrots or sliced carrots
  • 1 1/4 c. chicken stock
  • 1/2 c. dried lentils

1. In a small bowl, combine the 6 first ingredients to make the Moroccan spice blend. Set aside.

2. In a large skillet, heat olive oil. Add onions and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Stir in spice blend and cook for an additional 3 minutes, stirring frquently so that the spices do not burn.

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2. Add chicken, carrots and chicken stock to the skillet. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer. Cook at least until the chicken is fully cooked, about 20-25 minutes. Longer simmering will increase the flavor.

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3. 20 minutes before you plan to eat (and after the chicken is fully cooked), remove chicken from skillet and set aside. Add lentils to the skillet, bring stock back to a boil, cover and simmer about 15 more minutes, until lentils are fully cooked but not mushy.

4. Shred or dice chicken and add back to the skillet. Stir to combine. Serve over rice or couscous.

For a fun variation, leave out the carrots and reduce stock to just 1/2 a cup. Serve the fully cooked mixture in pitas.

Or, to make this vegetarian, skip the chicken, up the lentil to 2 cups and use vegetable stock in place of chicken stock.

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18 thoughts on “Moroccan Chicken & Lentils”

  1. Mmm, looks tasty! And you know what else is perfect- I think I have all the ingredients needed sitting in my kitchen right now! Looks like dinner tomorrow, yay!

  2. I just emailed you & then realized it went to a no reply on gmail. 🙂
    thanks for linking up…you saved me from being stood up. 🙂
    I didn’t know there were other Tuesday food parties…fun, fun. 🙂
    This loooks amazing!

  5. Wow, that looks awesome! I love Moroccan food too. My family “discovered” it at the Moroccan restaurant at Epcot, of all places. But I just love the flavors and will definitely give this a try!

  6. I’ve never tried Moroccan, but LOVE all ethnic food. This sounds delightful, I’m definitely going to need to give it a whirl!!!

  9. I have never tried Moroccan food either, but this looks wonderful. I do know that I love all those spices, so I’m printing this off to try it! Thanks!

  13. It looks so yummy! You take GREAT pictures.
    I am definitely going to have to try this. Thank you for telling me the spices are important, cause that’s what I usually try to fudge on and then I can never figure out why it doesn’t taste the same 🙂

  14. I made this for supper this past week, and it went over well. My kids tend to be picky about anything new, but they liked it! My husband and I like to try different things, and we both thought it was great. I think it will become a regular dish for us.

  15. Jenna, I’m also wondering if this could be made in the crock pot. I may give it a try with bone-in chicken breasts (saves money, too!).

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