Let's continue our festive menu series with a delicious traditional Moroccan recipe that my grandmother used to make but is not as popular nowadays: Couscous Stuffed Chicken!! It's absolutely wonderful. Try it and let me know what you think!
RECIPE:
INGREDIENTS:
For the couscous:
350 grams (0.8 pound) couscous
150 grams (1 cup) whole almonds, blanched, fried
100 grams (2/3 cup) raisins, soaked in water
3 tablespoons white granulated sugar
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt, to taste
2 teaspoons orange blossom water
For the chicken:
1 whole chicken
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon pepper, to taste
1/2 teaspoon salt, to tase
A pinch of saffron threads
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Ingredients for the sauce:
2 medium onions (250 grams / 9 oz.), chopped
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter
A small bunch of fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground ginger
A pinch of saffron threads
1 teaspoon salt, to taste
1/4 teaspoon pepper, to taste
1 cinnamon stick
DIRECTIONS:
Step 1: Prepare the couscous
1- Cook the couscous either by steaming it the traditional way or by using an express method.
2- In a large bowl, place the cooked couscous and add the rest of the couscous ingredients: Chopped almonds, raisins, sugar, ground cinnamon, salt, and orange blossom water. Mix. Keep some of the chopped almonds for decoration.
Step 2: Prepare and fill the chicken
3- Wash the chicken in water and rinse with salt and lemon.
4- To prepare the chicken marinade, in a large bowl, combine: ground ginger, ground turmeric, pepper, salt, saffron threads, and vegetable oil and mix. Rub the marinade all over the chicken. Cover and let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes.
5- Fill the chicken with the couscous mix. Keep the rest of the couscous to serve alongside the chicken.
6- Close the chicken cavity using toothpicks.
7- Truss the chicken using kitchen thread.
Step 3: Cook the chicken
8- On medium heat, drizzle a large pot with vegetable oil. Add the butter. Add the chopped onions. Add the spices: ground ginger, ground turmeric, pinch of saffron, a cinnamon stick, and salt. Mix.
9- Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes on all sides so that the chicken absorbs all the onion and spice flavors.
10- Half-cover the chicken with water, add a bouquet of fresh cilantro, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium low. Cook for 15 minutes then turn the chicken and cook for another 15 minutes.
11- Place the chicken in a baking pan lined with parchment paper. Rub with butter. Place in the oven at 200°C / 400°F degrees for around 15 minutes or until the chicken develop a golden color.
Step 4: Plate all
12- Remove the cilantro and the cinnamon stick from the sauce. Add sugar, and mix. Continue cooking the sauce on high heat for 5 minutes to thicken.
13- If you want even more flavors in the raisins we add to the couscous, drain the raisins from their soaking water, place them in a saucepan, cover them with the chicken sauce, and cook for around 10 minutes. Then add them to the couscous.
14- Take some of the chicken sauce and pour it all over the couscous. Mix.
15- Taste the couscous and adjust salt, sugar, ground cinnamon, and orange blossom water to your taste.
16- Remove the thread from the chicken.
17- To decorate, create small heaps made of couscous then place the chicken in the center of your serving plate.
18- Pour the sauce on top of the chicken and top with fried blanched almonds.