Moroccan Lemon Chicken With Olives

Name: Moroccan Lemon Chicken With Olives
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 2 serving(s)
Ingredients: 1 onion, medium, peeled, quartered; 1 medium garlic clove, peeled, minced; 2 large chicken breasts; 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour; 1/2 tablespoon olive oil; 1 1/4 cups water, divided; 1 pinch saffron; 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin; 1/4 teaspoon paprika; 1/8 teaspoon salt; 2 tablespoons lemon juice; 1 lemon, zest of, minced; 1/4 cup green olives, pitted, chopped; 1 tablespoon cilantro, minced; 1/2 cup couscous; 1 dash black pepper

Submitted by Sydney Mike

"This North African recipe was taken from the internet & tweaked slightly."

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photo by Papa D 1946-2012

Ready In:: 1hr 20mins
Ingredients:: 17
Serves:: 2

ingredients

1 onion, medium, peeled, quartered
1 medium garlic clove, peeled, minced
2 large chicken breasts
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
¹⁄₂ tablespoon olive oil
1 ¹⁄₄ cups water, divided
1 pinch saffron
¹⁄₄ teaspoon ground ginger
¹⁄₄ teaspoon ground cumin
¹⁄₄ teaspoon paprika
¹⁄₈ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zest of, minced
¹⁄₄ cup green olives, pitted, chopped
1 tablespoon cilantro, minced
¹⁄₂ cup couscous
1 dash black pepper

directions

In food processor, finely chop onion & garlic.
Dredge chicken in flour.
In large skillet, heat oil over medium heat, then saute chicken & onion mixture until mixture has softened, about 10 minutes.
Stir in 1/2 cup water, the saffron, ginger, cumin, paprika, salt & lemon zest.
Bring to boil, then reduce heat & simmer, covered, 35 minutes.
Remove chicken from sauce & allow to cool a few minutes.
Cut chicken into small pieces, then put meat back into sauce.
To the sauce add lemon juice, olives, cilantro & pepper, & simmer gently 5 minutes.
While chicken is cooking, in a medium saucepan bring 3/4 cup of water to a boil.
Add couscous & bring back to a boil, then remove from heat & allow to sit for 5 minutes.
Spoon chicken mixture over couscous & serve.

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Reviews

Made this recipe twice now. The first time I followed the recipe pretty closely (used less olives as I am not a fan) and it was very good, but seemed like something was "missing" to me and my dinner guests. The next time, I used a better quality saffron (and more of it), added the called for amount of olives, and added red pepper flakes. That was the winning combination for us! Thank you for sharing this recipe!

Laneydey
This was delicious. I made as noted except omitted the cilantro as I am not a fan. I used 2 large boneless, skinless breast halves. The dish went together quickly. Cover while simmering to keep juices in the pot. I served it with vegetable couscous. Yum. I will be adding this to my tried-and-true folder.

Halima Dances
OH MY! This is a 5 STAR restaurant quality recipe! What a wonderful blend of spices and ingredients that complement each other for a SUPREME MEAL :) Made as written and will defiantly be made again. Thanks Syd for posting. Made for SSaSSy's ZWT 6.

Papa D 1946-2012
This was a great dinner. I made a couple of substitutions- first, I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts; second, I used orzo instead of couscous (cooked to package directions). Since I used boneless chicken, I only needed to simmer 10 minutes in step 5, which got the chicken to a perfect level of doneness, and got dinner on the table faster! I had to add a little extra water, though, to keep the onion mixture from going dry and burning. We loved the flavors in this dish! In fact, we loved them so much that I think I would double the ginger, paprika, and cumin the next time, and maybe add some of it to the dredging flour. Thanks for a great recipe, I look forward to making it again!

IngridH
I know my Moroccan and this is not Moroccan. The recipe tasted blend and I tried to make it taste better but that did not help. This is not authentic.

Espy S.