Moroccan Chicken and Lentils
Author: Jeanine Friesen
Ingredients
- 2 cans of lentils, drained & rinsed (or 1 lb dried brown lentils, cooked according to package instructions)
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons ground cumin, divided
- 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 1/2 lbs skinless boneless chicken breast halves, thinly sliced
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Rinse lentils with hot water, drain well and place in a large bowl.
- Whisk 1 cup olive oil, vinegar, 2 Tbsp cumin, 2 Tbsp chili powder, garlic and 1 tsp salt in a large measuring cup. Pour 1 cup dressing over lentils and toss. Cool.
- Heat 2 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add onion; saute until dark brown and soft, about 5 minutes. Add chicken and saute for 2 more minutes. Add 1 tsp salt, 1 Tbsp cumin, 2 Tbsp chili powder, and cinnamon. Saute until chicken is cooked through, about 3 more minutes.
- Arrange lentils on a large platter. Place sliced chicken on top of lentils. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and sprinkle with chopped parsley.
- This dish can be made 2 hours ahead, and you can leave it at room temperature. I think I would refrigerate it, due to the chicken. It would be great to take on a picnic though, or for a pot luck.
Notes
Source: Epicurious.com
betty r says
Jeanine, I'm lovin' this dish:) It's good to try different foods and if you get the youngsters started early they will be more open to trying new dishes.
Jeanine says
Funny you should mention the kids, Betty. Yesterday we had 3 new recipes for supper…a roasted sweet potato, a grilled chicken, and a coleslaw without mayo. That was a tough supper for them to get through, one finally decided to eat their potatoes, and the other their coleslaw. but we told them, if we don't try something new, how do we know there isn't something that we're missing that we'd like? Abby just responded with "But, I know what I like.". 🙂 Ah, but at one time, creamy noodles, or chicken alfredo pizza were new too. 😉 None of the dishes yesterday were our favorite either, but at least we all tried it!
Glutton For Reward says
I'd love to see the spice of this recipe counteracted maybe with some sweet apples…totally underrated and versatile fruit.
I just posted about it on my blog, Glutton For Reward: http://gluttonforreward.blogspot.com/.
The Mixing Bowl Diary says
sounds yummy. the picture is making me hungry!!!
France says
I love the idea of adding apples, I usually add raisins or currants to moroccan influenced dishes. I find that children are more open to these ethnic foods when there's fruit. Don't know why? but then who cares…they're eating it!
Healthy Mamma says
Mmmmm, moroccan lentils sound wonderful! We love our lentils around here. It takes some getting used to and consistency/re-introducing w the kids;3 out of 4 of my kids eat them up wout complaint now that they are used to them. So good for you too!
If you'd like, I would love for you to visit my blog Simply Healthy Family. I have lots of wonderful, kid approved lentil, quinoa, millet etc recipes!
Happy New Year!
Tasty Eats At Home says
This sounds pretty tasty! I love the spices commonly found in moroccan cooking.
Kim-Cook it Allergy Free says
Holy Wow!! Jeanine, these flavors sounds wonderful! I just bookmarked this and put all of the ingredients on my grocery list for dinner this week. My boys will love this – strangely enough, they love anything with lentils. Great recipe!!! 😉
Rebecca Michaud says
I love lentils now!!! One of my go-to recipes is Lentil Soup. I add shredded chicken or some chicken sausage to it at the end. I love your recipes so much and I don’t mind sharing one of my own… =)
Lentil Soup
1 Tb Olive Oil
1 Onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
2 bay leaves
3-4 carrots, sliced
3-4 stalks celery, sliced
1 Tb cumin
1 tsp parsley
2 c dry lentils
2 qts chicken broth
¼ c tomato paste (or more if you like)
Heat olive oil in a pot. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for a 3-5 min. Add tomato paste, broth, lentils, bay leaves, cumin, parsley, carrots and celery. Stir. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and let simmer for 45 minutes.
Jeanine Friesen says
Oh, that sounds great, Rebecca! Thanks for sharing!