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Harissa Chicken Couscous is so good. It features juicy pan-seared chicken thighs cooked with eggplant and harissa-flavored pearly couscous. It’s served with grilled lemon, a tangy yogurt sauce and sweet and tart pomegranate arils. This easy dinner is spicy and flavorful and everything comes together easily in one-skillet. Serve with this Moroccan Carrot Noodle Salad with Golden Raisins, Goat Cheese and Harissa for the perfect Moroccan-inspired meal!
I can’t get enough of harissa. This spicy chile paste adds sooo much flavor to anything you put it on. Everything from these Harissa Meatballs(Whole 30), Sheet Pan Harissa Chicken with Chickpeas and Eggplant to these Mini Shakshukas are loaded with flavor and are so simple to throw together for easy weeknight meals.
Ingredients You’ll Need for Harissa Chicken with Couscous
- Chicken – I used bone-in chicken drumsticks and thighs with the skin on. Bone-in meat is juicy and it’s hard to overcook. Use all thighs or all drumsticks if you like!
- Harissa – This is a spicy and flavorful paste originating from North Africa. It’s made with blended chiles, cumin and coriander seeds, garlic and plenty of olive oil. I have a recipe that shows you how to make harissa from scratch or you can purchase it in the ethnic/international sections of most major grocery stores.
- Couscous – Couscous is type of pasta made from semolina flour. You can usually find two different types of couscous in stores – pearl couscous and regular couscous which is similar to rice in size. For this recipe you want use to pearly couscous. It takes longer to cook but it adds nice texture to this recipe.
For the rest of the ingredients, please refer to the recipe index card below!
How To Make Harissa Chicken with Couscous
- Cook the chicken – Sprinkle both sides of the chicken thighs and drumsticks with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with olive oil. Once hot, add the chicken skin-side down. Cook for 15 minutes or until the skin is golden brown, flip and repeat. Remove chicken from the pan and set aside.
- Cook the eggplant – To the same skillet, cook the eggplant for 2 – 3 minutes per side, then transfer to the plate with the par-cooked chicken.
- Make the couscous – Reduce the heat down to medium-low then cook the shallot, garlic, spices and salt for 2 – 3 minutes or until the shallot is translucent. Add in harissa and a splash of water, stir then add the couscous. Stir until couscous is coated in the spices.
- Cook couscous and chicken – Nestle the chicken and eggplant into the couscous, pour in water, bring the heat up to medium-high to simmer for 10 – 12 minutes or until the couscous is tender. Cook it partially covered.
- Prep garnishes – Grill lemon halves over a gas stove or using a hot grill pan. Whisk in lemon juice and a splash of water into yogurt and chop up Italian parsley.
- Assemble and serve – Remove harissa chicken from the heat then squeeze over grilled lemon, drizzle with yogurt sauce, then sprinkle over pomegranate seeds and Italian parsley. Serve immediately.
Tips and Tricks
- Prep the eggplant and garnishes while the chicken is cooking. Browning the chicken takes 30 minutes, so I used this time to prep the rest of the dish, that way everything came together much quicker.
- Other vegetables – Add in canned chickpeas for added texture. Green or Kalamata olives, freshly chopped mint or cilantro.
- Couscous – Substitute it for brown rice or quinoa. Refer to the package’s instructions for the water amounts. If you are using couscous make sure to use pearly couscous, it’s larger than regular couscous which resembles rice.
- Storage instructions – Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave until hot.
Recipe FAQs
Harissa is a traditional North African paste made with dried chiles, ground cumin and coriander, smoked paprika, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. It’s spicy, smoky and a flavorful addition to anything you put it on.
If you can’t find harissa in stores or don’t want to use it, substitute it for chile paste mixed with tomato paste for a similar flavor profile.
More Dinner Recipes
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This first step of cooking the chicken takes a bit of time (around 30 minutes) so I used this time to prep the rest of the dish. It worked out splendidly!
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Sprinkle both sides of the chicken thighs and drumsticks with a few pinches of salt and a few turns of freshly ground pepper. To a large skillet, set over medium-high heat, add the oil. When the oil is hot, swirl it around a bit and then add the chicken, skin-side down, and cook for about 15 minutes, until the skin is golden brown. Flip and cook on the opposite side for an additional 15 minutes. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside.
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Add the pieces of eggplant and cook for 2 to 3 minutes on each side. Add the eggplant to the plate with the par-cooked chicken.
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Turn the flame down to medium-low and add the shallot, garlic, spices and salt. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the shallot is translucent. Add the harissa, splash of water and mix until the harissa is combined with the water and spices. Add the couscous and mix until the couscous is covered and coated in the spice mixture, about 2 to 3 minutes.
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Nestle the chicken into the couscous and add the eggplant around the chicken. Pour the water or chicken broth (for the record, I used water and it was delicious!) in different spots hitting the couscous. Bring the flame to medium-high heat and simmer the couscous mixture for about 10 to 12 minutes. You’ll notice that the water should be mostly evaporated. Give the couscous a try and if it needs a bit more time, keep it on the stove for an additional 2 to 3 more minutes.
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While it’s cooking, prepare the garnishes. I grilled some lemon over my gas stove. I squeezed a bit of lemon juice and stirred in a splash of water to the yogurt and whisked it together to thin it out. And I chopped up some Italian parsley.
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Remove the harissa chicken dish from the heat and squeeze the grilled lemon over the chicken and couscous. Drizzle with the yogurt, sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds and Italian parsley. Serve immediately.
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This dish is delicious as leftovers and is good for up to 3 days when stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
Tips and Tricks
- Prep the eggplant and garnishes while the chicken is cooking. Browning the chicken takes 30 minutes, so I used this time to prep the rest of the dish, that way everything came together much quicker.
- Other vegetables – Add in canned chickpeas for added texture. Green or Kalamata olives, freshly chopped mint or cilantro.
- Couscous – Substitute it for brown rice or quinoa. Refer to the package’s instructions for the water amounts. If you are using couscous make sure to use pearly couscous, it’s larger than regular couscous which resembles rice.
- Storage instructions – Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave until hot.
Serving: 4g | Calories: 628kcal | Carbohydrates: 80g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 1790mg | Potassium: 704mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 358IU | Vitamin C: 22mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
