Orange-tomato Couscous W/chicken (zwt-9 - Morocco)

Total Time: 55 mins Preparation Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 6 chicken thighs (boneless, skinless. may use breasts, about 1 1/2 lbs)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper (freshly ground)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon (divided)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons cumin (divided)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
• 1 medium onion (thinly sliced)
• 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes (with juice)
• 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas (rinsed)
• 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 4 tablespoons fresh cilantro (chopped & divided)
• 1 orange (scrubbed, halved & cut into 1/4-in slices)
• 1 cup whole wheat couscous

Recipe

• 1 pat chicken thighs dry w/a paper towel. season w/salt, pepper, 1/4 tsp cinnamon & 1/4 teaspoon cumin.
• 2 heat 1 tbsp oil in a dutch oven over med heat. add the chicken thighs & cook until browned (3-4 min per side). transfer to a plate & set aside.
• 3 add the remaining 1 tbsp oil & onion to the pan. cook (stirring occ) until the onion is softened (about 2 min). add the remaining 1 tsp each of cinnamon & cumin. cook (stirring constantly) for 30 seconds. add tomatoes & their juice, chickpeas, broth, 2 tbsp cilantro & orange slices. bring to a simmer (stirring w/a wooden spoon to scrape up any browned bits). return the chicken & any collected juice to the pan. cover & cook over med-low heat until the chicken is cooked through (5-10 min). transfer the chicken to a clean plate.
• 4 bring the cooking liquid back to a boil. stir in couscous & place the chicken thighs on top of the mixture. remove from heat, cover & let stand for 5 min before serving. garnish w/the remaining cilantro.
• 5 note: altho not mentioned in the recipe, i have allowed for using chicken breasts vs thighs because i prefer them. however, if lrg breasts are used, you may want to consider adjusting the ingredients & cooking times accordingly.