Take a culinary journey to the Middle East! Lots of warm spices, with just a touch of heat. Comforting couscous for an exotic take on pasta. And a cool cucumber salad to balance the meal. This flavor-packed recipe will bring you to another world!
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It's a Balancing Act!
Putting a meal together takes some planning. It requires contrast and compatibility, and a balance between flavors and textures. You don't want a dinner that's all hot spices, or all soft ingredients. On the other hand, you don't want a lot of components that don't mix well together. If you want to see what this means, watch a few episodes of "Chopped" and listen to the judges' comments!
In this dinner we've got a layer of soft couscous; covered with chicken, which has a chewy texture and warm spices; and accompanied by a cool, crunchy cucumber salad. In addition, there are flavor links between the components. The couscous and chicken both contain cumin, and the chicken and salad both have Greek yogurt as an ingredient. These types of flavor connections bring the entire meal together.
Ingredients You'll Need
For the Cucumber Salad
- cucumber
- Greek yogurt
- lemon juice
- dill weed
- salt and pepper
For the Couscous
- couscous
- olive oil
- ground cardamom
- ground cinnamon
- salt
- ground cumin
- black pepper
- cayenne pepper
For the Chicken
- chicken
- lime juice
- olive oil
- ground turmeric
- ground ginger
- ground cumin
- salt and pepper
- olive oil
- Greek yogurt
Suggested Garnishes (use your favorites!)
- limes, cut into wedges
- toasted pine nuts
- chopped pistachios
- chopped fresh mint
- sumac
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use chicken breasts instead of thighs?
Sure. We generally prefer thighs because they have more flavor.
I only have regular yogurt, will that work?
The short answer it, use whatever you have on hand! You can even use sour cream as a substitute.
Of course, regular yogurt will produce a more liquid sauce in the chicken. If you so a search for "how to drain yogurt" you'll find a lot of ways to thicken regular yogurt so that it approximates the texture Greek yogurt. Greek yogurt is also allowed to cook longer which gives it a more tangy flavor. Depending on how sensitive your palate is, you might not notice the difference.
What is couscous? Is it a grain?
Couscous is made from semolina, which is coarsely ground durum wheat. Although those bits of couscous look like grains of something, they're really pasta made from semolina flour. So it's not a "grain" any more than any other type of pasta.
What is sumac?
Sumac is the dried and ground fruit of the sumac tree. It has a unique tart, citrus flavor, and there isn't a very good substitute for it. Sumac is not well known or commonly used in North America, but it's an essential condiment in Persian cooking. In Iran you'll usually find in on the table next to the salt and pepper!
Let's Make a Middle Eastern Dinner!
Make the Cucumber Salad First
This is a chilled salad, so you'll want to give it time... at least an hour, but the longer the better... to marinate in the refrigerator. You can make the salad early in the day, or even the day before!
Here's what you'll need: cucumbers, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, dill weed, salt, and pepper. (We don't peel English cucumbers.)
Just mix everything together, cover with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator to chill out. If you're making the salad early in the day, stop in a couple of times to give it a few stirs.
Make the Couscous
The couscous has to sit for a while off the stove, so make it next. It should be done just about the time the chicken is ready! Here are the ingredients: couscous, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, cumin, black pepper, and some cayenne pepper for just a touch of heat. You'll also need water and olive oil.
Bring the water to a boil and stir in the couscous, olive oil, and spices. Cover the pan, take it off the heat, and let it sit for 5 minutes.
Cook the Chicken
Here's what you'll need: chicken, yogurt, lime juice, and spices: turmeric, ginger, cumin, salt, and pepper.
Pour the spices and lime juice into the chicken and mix well. You could do this ahead too, and leave the chicken in the fridge until you're ready to cook!
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and sauté for 6 to 8 minutes, until it's cooked through.
Take the pan off the head and stir in the yogurt. Taste and adjust the seasonings.
Serve it Up!
Take the lid off the couscous and fluff it with a fork.
If you're entertaining, spread the couscous over a large serving plate and pour the chicken over it. Let your guests serve themselves, and pass the garnishes in small bowls. But if it's just a home dinner, serve yourselves right out of the pans!
This is one of those dishes that tastes even better the next day!
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📖 Recipe Card
Persian-Style Chicken with Couscous and Cucumber Salad
Special Equipment Needed
- 1 medium saucepan
- 1 large skillet
Ingredients
For the Salad
- 2 English cucumbers quartered lengthwise and sliced into bite-size pieces
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dill weed
- Salt and black pepper to taste
For the Couscous
- 1 ½ cups water
- 1 cup couscous
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
For the Chicken
- 1 ½ pounds chicken thighs boneless and skinless, cut into bite-sized pieces
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
Suggested Garnishes
- Limes cut into wedges
- Toasted pine nuts
- Chopped pistachios
- Chopped fresh mint
- Sumac
Instructions
Make the Salad
- Mix the cucumbers, yogurt, dill, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.2 English cucumbers, 1 cup Greek yogurt, 1 teaspoon dill weed, Salt and black pepper, 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Make the Couscous
- Bring 1 cup of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the couscous, olive oil, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, cumin, black pepper, and cayenne pepper. Stir well to combine the ingredients.1 ½ cups water, 1 cup couscous, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon ground cumin, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- Cover the pan, remove from the heat, and let stand for 5 minutes.
Make the Chicken
- Mix the chicken, onion, garlic, lime juice, oil, turmeric, ginger, cumin, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.1 ½ pounds chicken thighs, 2 tablespoons lime juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 2 teaspoons ground turmeric, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high in a large skillet until hot, but not smoking. Add the chicken mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 8 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Remove the skillet from the heat.1 tablespoon olive oil
- Stir in the yogurt and adjust the seasoning to taste.1 cup Greek yogurt
To Serve
- Fluff the couscous with a fork, portion onto plates, and spoon the chicken on top.
- Serve with the cucumber salad, lime wedges, and sumac for garnish.Limes, Sumac
Nutrition Estimate
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Kathy
This dish is an explosion of flavor!!! The salad, couscous and chicken together really demonstrate the point in your article on balance. I will definitely make it again.
I only used 2 toppings - roasted pine nuts and Sumac. Thank you for the introduction to Sumac! Next time I will make sure to include pistachios and lime wedges. I see why you would need that crunch from the nuts and the lime to cut the whirlwind of spice a bit. Please note that the ingredients for the couscous differ in the ingredients list and in the instruction. I used Cayenne. Not terrible, just a bit too hot for me - yogurt salad to the rescue. Next time I will use black pepper with the tiniest dash of cayenne. The spices on the chicken were delicious! I'm going to store premixed Persian spices for next time. Thanks!
Kurt
Hi Kathy, thanks for the review. I'm glad you liked the dish, and that you've discovered sumac. Its unique flavor really kicks a dish up a notch!
Thanks for catching the problem with the pepper. Ingredients appear in several places on a recipe page, and keeping them in sync is the most tedious part of writing a recipe. I've corrected the "make the couscous" step in the recipe card to include the cayenne.