Mediterranean Chicken Couscous

Mediterranean Chicken Couscous is a healthy one-pot dish that has fruit, vegetables, meat, pasta, color, flavor, little fat and is very tasty.

_{Updated on 08.16.24}

This Mediterranean Chicken Couscous is one of my one-pot go to dishes. I love it because it has a little bit of everything, without being heavy. It has fruit (lemon, cranberries, orange), vegetables (onion, bell peppers, garlic), meat (chicken), and pasta (couscous). It is flavorful (curry, cumin, ginger, cinnamon, coriander, salt & pepper) and colorful.

The first time I had a combination of cumin, coriander and cinnamon with chicken or may be even fish was on one of my trips the northern Africa; Morocco and Tunisia, many years ago. I love this flavor combination ever since.

Key Ingredients in This Recipe

• Chicken breast
• Spice blend – coriander, ginger, oregano, cinnamon, cumin
• Olive oil
• Orange juice
• Chicken stock
• Dried cranberries
• Curry powder
• Garlic paste – or garlic clove
• Onion
• Bell pepper
• Couscous
• Fresh herbs – basil and coriander
• Lemon

How to Make Mediterranean Chicken Couscous

Step 1 – Mix the spice blend and add salt and pepper. Cut the chicken breast in strips or small cubes, and rub the spice mixture into the meat.

Heat olive oil in a skillet and add the chicken. Cook until brown and just done. Transfer the chicken to a plate and keep warm.

Step 2 – In a small sauce pan, bring orange juice and chicken stock to a boil. Remove from heat, add cranberries and curry powder. Mix and let stand for about 10 minutes.

Step 3 – Chop the onion and bell pepper. Heat some olive oil in the same skillet as the chicken and add garlic paste, onion and bell pepper. Saute for a couple of minutes. Vegetables need to remain crunchy.

Step 4 – Add the couscous and stir.

Step 5 – Add the juice mixture.

Step 6 – Add the chicken and stir. Bring to a boil, turn off heat immediately and cover. Allow the couscous to absorb the liquids. This will take about 5-10 minutes.

Step 7 – Taste and season with salt & pepper if needed. Drizzle with a little bit of lemon juice.

Plate the dish, sprinkle with freshly chopped basil and cilantro and ENJOY !

This is a close-up of the dish, so you can see the variety of colors.

Alternatives and Substitutes

• Turkey breast instead of chicken breast. I can also see this with ground chicken/turkey.
• The orange juice can be fresh or from a pack or bottle.
• Dried cranberries can be replaced with fresh cranberries or with other dried fruits.
• Couscous. I’ve used Moroccan couscous, but the Israeli or pearl couscous works as well.
• Any color of bell pepper will do.
• Fresh herbs can be replace by herb paste from Gourmet Garden (this is not sponsored; I just find this handy for small households).
• Lime, instead of lemon is fine.

Other Couscous Recipes to Try

• Pumpkin Pepper Pearl Couscous
• Cauliflower Couscous with Brie and Pepitas
• Fruity Couscous Salad with Chicken

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Mediterranean Chicken Couscous

Author: Marinka

Mediterranean Chicken Couscous is a healthy one-pot dish that has fruit, vegetables, meat, grains, color, flavor, little fat and is filling.

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time15 minutes mins

Total Time35 minutes mins

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Servings: 2 people

Ingredients

• 8 ounces chicken breast boneless and skinless
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic paste
• 1/2 onion
• 1 whole red bell pepper
• 3/4 cup couscous
• basil julienne-cut
• cilantro finely chopped
• 1 lemon quartered
• salt and pepper

Instructions

• Mix salt and spices, coriander thru black pepper.
• Cut chicken breast in strips and rub spice mix into chicken.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet and add the chicken. Cook until brown and just done. Take chicken out of the skillet and keep warm.
• Bring orange juice and chicken broth to a boil. Add the cranberries. Remove from heat, add curry powder and let stand for approx 10 minutes. (NOTE 1)
• Chop onion fine, cut bell pepper in strips, roughly the size of the chicken breast or any size you want.
• Heat 1 tablespoon in same skillet and add garlic paste, onion, and bell pepper. (NOTE 2)
• Saute for a couple of minutes. Vegetables need to remain crunchy. Add couscous.
• Add orange juice/broth mixture and chicken and bring to a boil. Turn off heat immediately and cover. Allow the couscous to absorb the liquids, approx. 5-10 minutes.
• Taste and season with salt & pepper if needed. Drizzle with a little bit of lemon juice.
• Scoop couscous in serving dish, sprinkle with basil and cilantro and add quartered lemon. (NOTE 3)

Notes

1. Check the directions on the packaging of the couscous. Not all brands recommend the same amount of liquid vs couscous. I personally prefer to add a little bit more juice. With some manufacturing recommendations the couscous dish comes out really dry.
2. Instead of garlic paste, you can use fresh garlic. 1 teaspoon of garlic paste = 1 clove
3. Instead of fresh basil and cilantro, I prefer to use the Gourmet Garden products. This is a better representation of fresh than dry herbs.

Nutrition

Calories: 660kcal | Carbohydrates: 92g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 944mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 30g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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