This chermoula chicken recipe yields tender and juicy meat with crispy skin and tons of flavor thanks to a fresh zesty, spicy North African herb sauce. This restaurant-quality meal whips up in less than an hour and pairs well with couscous or an easy 15-minute bulgur wheat pilaf, which I also share the recipe for.
Add all ingredients to a food processor. Pulse a few times to chop it up a bit, and then process until it’s as smooth as you like it (don’t completely puree it, leave a bit of texture).
You can make the chermoula sauce up to 3 days ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge.
For the Chermoula Chicken:
Preheat the oven to 400F.
Heat a large cast-iron skillet (or other heavy-bottomed, oven-safe skillet) over medium-high heat.
Once the skillet is hot, add the chicken thighs skin-side-down, and sear until the skin is brown, about 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat. Flip the chicken thighs over and spread 2 tablespoons of chermoula sauce on top of each (reserve the remaining sauce for serving).
Bake until the chicken is fully cooked, about 25 to 30 minutes. (Dark meat chicken is fully cooked when it reaches an internal temperature of 165 to 175F.)
To Serve:
Serve the chicken with the remaining sauce to spoon on top, along with bulgur wheat pilaf or couscous if desired.
Notes
Nutrition Information: The nutritional information for this recipe was calculated without the optional Bulgur Pilaf for serving.
Chermoula Sauce Yield: This recipe makes about ¾ cup of sauce. You will need the entire batch to make 2 pounds of bone-in skin-on chicken thighs.
Storage: You can make the chermoula sauce up to 3 days ahead and store it in an airtight container in the fridge. After cooking chermoula chicken, let it cool to room temperature and then store it covered in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Bulgur Wheat Pilaf to Serve with Chermoula Chicken
One of my favorite things to serve with chermoula chicken is a sweet and savory bulgur pilaf. It’s packed with flavor and couldn’t be easier to make! Here’s my recipe:
Bulgur Pilaf Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, diced
3 tablespoons raisins
1 cup bulgur wheat
2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock to keep it vegetarian)
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons minced fresh herbs, such as mint, cilantro, or parsley
1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
How to Make Bulgur Pilaf:
Add the oil to a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion and cook until it’s softened, about 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the raisins, bulgur wheat, chicken stock, salt, and black pepper.
Bring to a boil, and then let it boil (uncovered) for 2 minutes.
Immediately turn off the heat, cover the saucepan, and let it sit covered with the heat off for 10 minutes.
Fluff with a fork, and then add the herbs and lemon zest, and gently stir to mix.