Moroccan Chicken & Lentils
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp coriander
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, sliced thin
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 – 1 1/2 lb chicken breasts
- baby carrots or sliced carrots
- 1 1/4 chicken stock
- 12 cup dried lentils
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine the 6 first ingredients to make the Moroccan spice blend. Set aside.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Shred or dice chicken and add back to the skillet. Stir to combine. Serve over rice or couscous.
Notes
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.