One-Pot Moroccan Chicken & Chickpea Stew

What more can you ask for when your dish features chicken and it’s a one-pot meal? That’s a total game-changer for me! This recipe was inspired from the Moroccan Chicken, Chickpea & Lentil Stew from America’s Test Kitchen: The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook. I’ve made this dish for years, and whenever I come back to it I feel so warm and cozy! The temperature has really dropped a lot this past week, so it’s the perfect time to make it!

If you’re new to Mediterranean cooking, then this certainly is a dish you must try! Making it one pot makes everything so much easier and less hassle for you! Additionally, it’s extremely healthy and well-balanced from the chicken, chickpeas and lentils. The Mediterranean diet is excellent for physical health, and this dish has everything you need! I go into more details in my 5 top tips to explore your potential in the kitchen, Make Cooking Fun!!, how having a theme can push you to be creative and delve into dishes you never thought you’d make before! If Morocco is a Destination Unseen to you, then be sure to try this recipe as part of your one-month Live to Cook challenge! Don’t forget to share your creation by tagging me on Instagram!

Be sure to follow along with me and watch the video! I’d appreciate if you subscribe to my YouTube channel, and hit the bell button so you receive the notifications when I upload all of my video recipes! I love to make them to complement the written recipes so you’re guaranteed success! Let’s get cooking!

Why You’ll Love This Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew!

• Easy to follow: This recipe is quite easy to follow, so it’s perfect for cooks of all levels! We cook everything in one pan (though the couscous will be on the side if you’re making it!), and then the magic comes from the simmering, so you can go ahead and do other things while that happens!
• Healthy & balanced meal: The Mediterranean diet is famous for being well-balanced and extremely nutritious! We emphasize protein from the chicken thighs, the lentils, and the chickpeas, and the lentils and chickpeas are excellent sources of carbohydrates.
• Warm Mediterranean flavors: The smell of this stew is just out of this world from the combination of Moroccan spices!
• Speedy clean-up: The stew itself cooks in just one pot (our cast iron pan here), so that’s the main thing you’ll need to wash! Otherwise, it’s just knives, a cutting board, measuring cups and spoons that you’ll need to wash. If you have a dishwasher, just throw it all in!

Equipment for Moroccan Chicken and Chickpea Stew

• Cutting board
• Saucepan
• Sharp chef’s knife
• Cast iron pan
• Mixing bowl
• Spatula
• Whisk
• Blender
• Garlic press
• Tongs
• Ladle
• Sieve
• Wooden spoon
• Measuring spoons
• Pepper mill
• Microplane
• Measuring cup

Ingredients for Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew

Remember to scroll to the bottom of this post for the FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD for all ingredient quantities and the complete instructions to save for later, and to scale the ingredients based on how many portions you want to make.

For the Couscous

• Couscous: I’m using small, Moroccan couscous.
• Butter: To add some flavor to the couscous.
• Water: Bring it to a boil to cook the couscous.

For the Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew

• Chicken thighs: Boneless, skinless chicken thighs. You can have bone-in if you want, but they’ll take longer to cook. They will be cooked and then shredded.
• Chickpeas: I’ll be using canned chickpeas to save some time here.
• Olive oil: To cook all of our ingredients.
• Garlic: Of course I recommend that you use fresh garlic cloves, but if you don’t have any for whatever reason (I’ve had my garlic cloves go bad last-minute unfortunately, it happens!), then garlic powder will work just fine!
• Ginger: Freshly grated ginger adds a wonderful aroma in the dish.
• Onions: I’m using red onions, but you can use your favorite kind of onion. They will be finely chopped.
• Tomatoes: I’m using tomatoes on the vine. You can use roma tomatoes too. If you don’t have fresh tomatoes on hand, you can use diced tomatoes.
• Chicken broth: I recommend that you use reduced salt or no salt added here. This gives you more control when seasoning the dish.
• Brown lentils: Also known as masoor dal or whole red lentils. I’m using dried lentils, and they will cook with the chicken and chickpeas.
• Spices: We’ll use cayenne, paprika, ground cumin, cinnamon, salt and pepper. We’ve also got some saffron threads to truly enhance the dish.
• All purpose flour: Helps to thicken up the stew.
• Harissa: This is a Northwest African hot chili pepper paste. You can make it yourself or buy it in a jar.
• Cilantro: Freshly chopped for garnish.

Ingredient Substitution Questions

How to Make Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew

For the Couscous

In a saucepan, add couscous, water, butter and salt. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan, and place off the heat. Let the couscous steam for 5-10 minutes.

Fluff up the couscous and set aside until ready to serve.

For the Moroccan Chicken & Chickpea Stew

Pat and dry the chicken and season each side with salt and pepper.

Heat a heavy bottomed pan or cocotte on medium heat, then add olive oil and the chicken pieces.

Sear on each side for 4-5 minutes or until they have a golden brown sear.

Set aside on a plate for now, they will finish cooking later.

In the same pan/cocotte, add the onions and more olive oil if needed.

Sauté for 3-5 minutes and then add the paprika, cayenne, cinnamon, cumin, garlic and ginger.

Mix well and cook until fragrant for 2-3 minutes.

Add the flour, cook for 1-2 minutes.

Add a splash of broth and mix to combine. Gradually, add the remaining broth while mixing and bring to a gentle simmer.

Add the canned and drained chickpeas, brown lentils and chicken.

Once the broth returns to a simmer, lower the heat and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Remove the chicken and shred with the help of 2 forks while you continue to cook the lentils for 20-30 minutes longer, or until tender.

Return the chicken to the pan/cocotte, add the tomatoes, harissa paste and cilantro. Mix well and adjust with salt and pepper to your taste.

Add saffron threads and simmer gently for 5 minutes.

Serve warm with couscous and enjoy!

Tips for a Satisfying Moroccan Chicken Stew

• Take the time to thoroughly dry the chicken before searing, and avoid over-crowding the pan if making a big batch. This will ensure the chicken is searing instead of boiling.
• You can use any cut of chicken, or a combination, be it boneless or bone-in to prepare this stew.
• Add more or less harissa paste to your own preference.
• It’s important to let the chicken simmer gently instead of boiling for the best texture in the meat.

What to Serve with Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew?

I’ve shown how to make our Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew with couscous! However, you can enjoy it with many different sides! Here are a couple of ideas:

• Basmati rice
• Cauliflower rice
• Quinoa
• Pita bread
• Crusty bread, such as baguette or Ciabatta
• Naan
• Orzo
• Light Vegan Couscous Salad

Recipe Variations

• Switch up the lentils: You can use your favorite lentil! Try green lentils, yellow split peas, whole red lentils or mix them up for a fun mashup.
• Protein: Make it vegan by removing the chicken. You could also add or swap with chorizo or lamb!
• Veggies: You could add some more vegetables such as eggplant, zucchini and/or carrots.

To Store

Store your Moroccan Chicken Chickpea Stew in an airtight container in the fridge. It will last for 3-4 days. If you’ve made couscous with the stew, store the couscous separate from the stew.

To Freeze

Freeze your Moroccan Chicken Stew in an airtight container for at most 3 to 4 months.

To Reheat

You can reheat your Moroccan Stew in the microwave or over the stove. If reheating from frozen, ensure to allow your stew to thaw in the refrigerator overnight.

If reheating over the stove, transfer the contents into a pot and bring it to a simmer over medium-low heat. For the microwave, ensure the stew is in a microwave-safe container or microwave-safe bowl. Heat for about 2-3 minutes, stirring at 30 second intervals to make sure it is evenly warmed through.

The Spices That Make It Moroccan

The spice mix is doing most of the work here, and the order you add things matters more than the quantities. After the onions have softened, the paprika, cayenne, cinnamon, cumin, garlic and ginger all go into the dry pan together and get about a minute of heat before any liquid arrives. That short bloom in the oil is what turns them from dusty to fragrant, and it is the difference between a stew that tastes Moroccan and one that just tastes spiced.

• A quarter teaspoon of ground cinnamon sounds like nothing, but it is the note that makes people ask what is in it. Warm rather than sweet — resist the urge to double it.
• Heat comes from two places: a teaspoon of cayenne chili in the spice bloom, and the harissa stirred in later. Adjust either to taste.
• Keep the pan on medium, or medium high heat if yours runs cool, and stir constantly during the bloom — ground spices catch and turn bitter in seconds.
• Scrape up the browned juices left from searing the chicken when the broth goes in. That fond is free flavor sitting on the bottom of the pan.
• The saffron threads go in at the very end and only need five minutes at a gentle boil. Add them early and their aroma simply cooks away.

A Note on the Chicken

Skinless boneless chicken thighs are the right call for a stew this long — they stay juicy through the simmer and shred cleanly with two forks. If you want to use something else:

• Chicken breasts work, but they dry out over a long simmer. Sear them, set them aside, and return them to the pot for only the last fifteen minutes.
• Bone-in pieces give the broth noticeably more body. Simmer them whole, then lift them out and slip the bones out before shredding the meat back into the pot.

Classic Moroccan Finishing Touches

The stew is complete as written, but a few traditional additions are worth knowing if you want to dress it up:

• A handful of chopped dried apricots added with the chickpeas. They soften into the broth and give you that sweet-and-savory contrast Moroccan tagines are known for.
• Toasted flaked almonds scattered over each bowl at the table for crunch.
• A squeeze of lemon just before serving. The stew is rich and a little acidity at the end lifts everything.
• Extra fresh cilantro — fresh coriander, if that is what it is called where you shop — stirred in off the heat as well as sprinkled on top.
• If your plum tomatoes are pale out of season, a spoonful of tomato paste added with the spices deepens the color and the savory backbone.

Other Chicken Recipes

• Homestyle Chicken Curry
• Chicken Nargisi Kofta Curry
• Perfectly Poached Chicken
• How to Master the Art of Grilled Chicken
• Korean Fried Popcorn Chicken
• Buttermilk Fried Chicken
• Spicy One-Pot Chicken & Rice