With dozens of 5-star reviews, you’ll love this grilled Moroccan Chicken! Made with ras el hanout, garlic, and lemon, this recipe is bursting with Moroccan flavor! Juicy tender chicken that turns out perfect every time; make it on the grill or on the stovetop.
While in Marrakech, we experienced some of the most flavorful Moroccan Chicken by a street vendor grilling chicken kabobs for the locals. I asked him what the secret was…
He seasoned the chicken with Ras El Hanout—simple yet amazing! A few weeks ago, while organizing my spice drawer, I found the Ras El Hanout spice I purchased in Morocco -I had forgotten all about it!
So I decided to replicate the ras el hanout chicken we had there- and oh my goodness- it turned out so flavorful and juicy with layers of complexity from all the different spices. I can’t wait for you try this!
Why you’ll love it!
- This Moroccan Chicken can be cooked on the grill (our favorite) or on the stovetop.
- You can use whole thighs, or breasts or turn them into skewers for the grill. However, you choose to make them I know you will love the flavor.
- The chicken is rubbed with flavorful Ras El Hanout, a spice blend you can make at home -or purchase this lovely Villa Jerada Ras El Hanout – made in Seattle!
Ingredients in Moroccan Chicken
- Chicken thighs – boneless and skinless ( or sub chicken breasts)
- Ras el hanout spice blend- make your own blend with spices you already have!
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh Garlic
- Fresh Lemon – lemon zest from one small lemon, plus juice for the end
- Herbs – parsley or mint for garnish or serve with Preserved Lemon Gremolata!
What is Ras El Hanout?
Traditionally, Moroccan chicken is seasoned with Ras El Hanout, a blend of spices (most often ginger, coriander, cumin, cloves, allspice, cinnamon, turmeric, pepper, and paprika) that varies from region to region in the North African countries of Morocco, Tunisia, and Algeria. No blend is the same!
How to make Moroccan Chicken
- Make a paste with Moroccan Spices, garlic and olive oil.
- Toss chicken with the flavorful paste, then grilled it (or pan-sear it) and finish it off in the oven until ready to serve.
- YES, you can make chicken kebabs which would grill up beautifully!
What to Serve with Moroccan Chicken
- Meltingly Tender Moroccan Eggplant
- Grain-Free Moroccan Cauliflower “Couscous”
- Preserved Lemon Gremolata
- Fluffy Basmati Rice (or everyday quinoa, or cauliflower rice)
- Couscous
- Lebanese Slaw (Salatet Malfouf)
More favorite Moroccan Recipes
Enjoy the Moroccan Chicken, and let us know what you think in the comments below!
xoxo
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Moroccan Chicken Recipe
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6
- Category: Chicken, main, grilled
- Method: grill
- Cuisine: moroccan
Description
Moroccan Chicken with Ras El Hanout, garlic and lemon – a simple healthy recipe, using skinless chicken thighs, bursting with North African flavor! Delicious, fast and easy! Grill it or pan-sear it!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs chicken thighs, boneless and skinless ( or sub chicken breasts)
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons ras el hanout spice blend
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
- lemon zest from one small lemon, plus juice for the end
- parsley or mint for garnish or Preserved Lemon Gremolata!
Instructions
Pre-heat the grill to medium-high. (See notes for stovetop)
Make a paste with the olive oil, ras el hanout, salt, garlic and lemon zest, mixing together in a medium bowl.
Add the chicken, and toss to coat all sides well. You could do this a day before and refrigerate.
Grill the thighs over medium-high heat, getting good grill marks on both sides. Move to a cooler side of grill, cover, and grill until cooked through (to 170 F), or place in a warm 350F oven to finish.
Right before serving, Squeeze with lemon and sprinkle with fresh herbs (mint and/or parsley) or make the flavorful Preserved Lemon Gremolata, and spoon over top.
Notes
If making skewers, cut chicken into one-inch cubes, toss with marinade, then skewer (making sure to soak wood skewers in water ahead so they don’t burn.) Grill over medium-high heat, getting good grill marks, then finish in a 350 F oven until cooked through.
Feel free to pan-sear the chicken in a large skillet, over medium-high heat, browning each side well, then place in a 375 F oven until cooked all the way through.
You can also bake the chicken on a sheet pan, on the middle rack, uncovered in 425F oven for 30-35 minutes or until internal temp reaches 165 F.
If buying- this Villa Jerada Ras El Hanout is lovely!
If using a different brand, be sure to check the ingredients in your ras el hanout. Some have salt as the first ingredient so adjust accordingly. Taste a bit to make sure the spice level is to your liking.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 5.5 ounces
- Calories: 272
- Sugar: 0.1 g
- Sodium: 728.5 mg
- Fat: 16 g
- Saturated Fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.4 g
- Fiber: 0.3 g
- Protein: 30.1 g
- Cholesterol: 142 mg
This was absolutely delicious! This is my first time to try a Moroccan recipe, and I was very happy with how it turned out. I love the simplicity of the ingredients and the process itself. My husband grilled it when he came home from work, but next time I will try baking it so it will already be cooked when he comes home. I also copied most of your spice blend recipes. And I think next time I’ll make a little bit more of the marinade to put over my rice. I ate it with sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. It was fantastic!
Wonderful to hear this! Appreciate you taking time to leave a review. 🙂
Excellent recipe! Word of advice to others – check the ingredients in your ras el hanout! I used a different brand from the one recommended here, and it listed salt as the first ingredient (and contained two different peppers – very spicy!). I will be buying the Villa Jerada ras el hanout for my next batch lol
Oh that’s an important tip! I will note the recipe. Thanks!
Very good! My picky eater liked it too. Better with the squeeze of lemon on it at the end like you said but I almost missed it. Delicious! Thank you!!
Great to hear Js! Appreciate the review.