Moroccan Chicken – Erren’s Kitchen

This Moroccan Chicken tagine recipe is a tasty, aromatic dish with tons of flavor. Serve it with couscous for a filling, luxurious meal.

This is one of my favorite meals.  The sauce is really luxurious with salty hints of flavor from the olives, sweetness from the turmeric, a bit of sour from the lemon, and the saffron, herbs, and chicken stock to balance it out perfectly.

If you love Moroccan-influenced food as much as I do, maybe try my Moroccan  Spiced Vegetable Couscous next time.

Best For Chicken for Tagines

It’s always best to use chicken on the bone when braising. Dark meat chicken such as thighs or legs work best as they don’t dry out as much as breasts.

How to Use Chicken Breasts for This Dish

If your preference for chicken meat is breast meat, I recommend you brine the breasts (on the bone) an hour first. Soaking the meat in salted water causes it to absorb some of the water making it moister when cooked.

To brine the chicken, place the breasts in a large bowl with two quarts of cold water mixed with 1/3 cup kosher or sea salt (not table salt). Cover and put in the refrigerator for 1-8 hours.

Step By Step Instructions

Coat the chicken in garlic, lemon juice, and spices, cover with plastic wrap and leave to marinate for anywhere from 20 minutes to overnight.

Infuse stock with saffron and set aside.

Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat dry. Lightly coat the chicken flour Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Place the chicken skin-side down in the pan. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until browned. 

Remove the chicken from the pan, add the onion, and cook until soft.

Add the spices and flour and saute with the onions to bloom the spices and cook out the flavor of the flour.

Add the marinade (including the lemons), stock, and herbs.

Add the olives and chicken to the pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

What to Serve with Moroccan Chicken

I love to serve this Moroccan Chicken dish with couscous, however you can serve with rice too. For the ultimate meal serve with some bread and salad. Delicious!

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Let’s Make
Moroccan Chicken

This tasty Moroccan dish is warming and hearty chicken tagine that’s perfect served with couscous.

Prep20 minutes minutes

Cook45 minutes minutes

Total1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

To Marinate the Chicken

• In a large bowl, mix the garlic, Lemon zest, lemon juice, the lemon remnants, cumin, ginger, paprika, salt and pepper, and the oil. Add the chicken. Mix everything together, cover, and set aside to marinate for anywhere from 20 minutes to 8 hours (the longer the better).

To Prepare the Dish

• Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C.

• Warm the stock, add the saffron and set aside to infuse.

• Remove the chicken from the marinade and pat it dry. Set the marinade aside.

• Lightly coat the chicken in 4 tablespoons of flour.

• Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Place the chicken skin-side down in the pan. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until browned. Remove the chicken from the pan and set it aside.

• Add the onion and cook for 4 to 5 minutes or until softened.

• Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of the flour to coat. Add the spices and sauté with the onions for 3 to 4 minutes.

• Slowly stir in the stock then add the leftover marinade and lemon remnants, and stir in the olives.

• Add the tied herbs, lemon slices & cilantro, and some salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat, add the chicken back to the pan, and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165°F/73°C.

• Discard herb bunches and lemon. Taste for seasoning and add more salt as needed and remove the skin if desired before serving.

Tips + Notes

• To use boneless and skinless chicken to make this recipe, adjust your cooking time down to 20-25 minutes.
• Marinating overnight will produce a more flavorful dish.
• This dish is even better the next day. Follow the make-ahead instructions below on storage and reheating.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 365 (18%)| Carbohydrates: 13g (4%)| Protein: 22g (44%)| Fat: 25g (38%)| Saturated Fat: 6g (38%)| Trans Fat: 1g| Cholesterol: 113mg (38%)| Sodium: 1380mg (60%)| Potassium: 403mg (12%)| Fiber: 1g (4%)| Sugar: 2g (2%)| Vitamin A: 268IU (5%)| Vitamin C: 3mg (4%)| Calcium: 32mg (3%)| Iron: 2mg (11%)

Nutritional Data Disclaimer

Erren’s Kitchen is written and produced for informational intentions only. We are not certified nutritionists, and the nutritional information found on this site has not been assessed or authorized by a nutritionist or the FDA. The nutritional information found in our recipes is offered as an estimate and should not be considered a guarantee or fact. The estimated data is provided as a courtesy and calculated through a third-party online nutritional calculator, spoonacular API. Although we do our best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered rough estimates. Many factors, such as brands or products purchased and the nutritional fluctuations that naturally occur in fresh produce, can alter the effectiveness of the nutritional information in any recipe. Furthermore, various online calculators provide different results depending on their particular algorithms and nutrition fact sources.
To obtain the most precise nutritional information in a provided recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the exact ingredients you are using when preparing the recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Course:Main

Cuisine:Moroccan

Keyword:Chicken Recipes, moroccan chicken, moroccan chicken recipe

Update Notes: This recipe was originally posted in 2014, but was updated with new photos, tips and Make-Ahead And Freezing Instructions in 2021