I take a trip to Morocco. But not really..

I often take inspiration from other chefs. You know, the ones that have had all that training and stuff. And some that haven't, but at least they have a TV show. And cookbooks. I want a cookbook; that would be totally wicked. Anyways, this recipe started life as something that Nigella Lawson made. I just took it to a different place. I used the same basic flavors and spices that she did, but I changed up the vegetables, cook time and heat, you know, just the basics.

So the main thing in this dish that makes it seem sort of Moroccan is the Chorizo. Which is Spanish, really. Maybe I should call it my Spanish Chicken...

Either way, this is probably one of the only ways I can get JP to eat sweet potatoes. Or anything orange, now that I think about it. He has some sort of very odd, strange, yet totally adorable (although very  challenging) prejudice against food that is orange. Not sure what that is about, but it makes if more fun for me to slip things like sweet potatoes past him. Its like a little game or something. I usually wait until he is finished eating to say something, just to prove to him that I am right and orange things taste good.

I digress, I'm sorry. Back to my chicken. This is a dish that is kind of a one pot stop on the dining circuit. Basically, you just throw everything into one dish and bake it for a while. Easy as can be, I swear.

But, for me, I never let good enough rest. I had to take it one step further. I decided to serve it with some cous cous and steamed broccoli. The broccoli just because it had been a while since I'd had any, and the cous cous because, well, I was still functioning on the Moroccan theory at the time.

So, steamed broccoli. pretty self explanatory I would think. So that brings us to the cous cous. This is a wonderful side dish, and in my not so professional opinion, very underrated. It is easier than the steamed broccoli. You just pour some boiling water over it, and let it sit for 5 minutes. It's great. Also, it is more or less a blank palate for whatever flavors that you want to add to it. In this case, I added lemon juice and fresh chopped mint. Totally amazing. To tie things off, I threw some chopped mint on top of my chicken dish. I will now argue that mint is an under appreciated garnish.

On to the chicken! Way to segue way, right?! This is really an easy dinner to make. I just used some chicken thighs, but you can substitute any chicken cut that you like. in the future, I might use chicken breast, to tell the truth. I will say that the thigh has a lot more flavor, but then again, this dish has so much going on, the extra flavor is hardly noticeable. So, a few pieces of chicken, some sweet potato and red onion, and some chorizo. Chop it all up, throw it in a bowl with some olive oil, salt, pepper, dried rosemary and oregano,  and some garlic. Bake for a bit. Serve. So good, it will have JP eating all the orange. I swear!

xoxo Craig


Keep reading for the recipe

This dish is really easy to adapt for the number of people that you are serving. If you are serving it with the chicken thigh, one piece per person. If you are using chicken breast, one half of a boneless breast per person. One sweet potato for 2 people, same with the onion and chorizo link.

What you need:

• 2 chicken thighs (or 1 chicken breast, cut in half)
• 1 red onion
• 1 sweet potato, peeled
• 1 chorizo link
• 1-2 teaspoons dried rosemary
• 1-2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• fresh mint, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil, more for drizzling
• salt and pepper
• cous cous (I use the pre-measured, packaged kind)
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced

Preheat the oven to 400º F (200º C).  

While the oven is heating, start by cutting the sweet potato, red onion and chorizo into bite sized chunks. You want them all relatively the same size, to equalize the cooking times. Place the the cut up vegetables and chorizo into a large bowl with the chicken. Drizzle with about 1/4 cup of olive oil, add salt, pepper, rosemary, oregano, and garlic power and mix to coat. 

Put the chicken mixture into a baking dish, making sure that the tops of the chicken are exposed so they can brown. Put into the oven for 20-25 minutes, until the chicken is brown and crisp on top.

Meanwhile, pour the cous cous into a heat proof bowl. Boil the required amount of water (usually about 3/4 cup). Pour over the cous cous, and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork, then add the zest of the lemon, the juice of the lemon, and a good handful of the chopped mint. Mix to combine.

Serve up the chicken and the baked vegetables and chorizo, with a nice scoop of the cous cous. Be transported to Morocco. Or Spain.