Harissa Honey Chicken

A white bowl filled with quinoa salad topped with grilled chicken, sliced avocado, red onions, fresh herbs, and greens, with another bowl blurred in the background.

Harissa Honey Chicken

Sweet, smoky, and perfectly spicy harissa honey chicken with a sticky caramelized glaze. Ready in 45 minutes and perfect for bowls, meal prep, or easy weeknight dinners.

Course Lunch

Cuisine Mediterranean/Middle Eastern Inspired

Keyword chicken, bowl

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 45

Marinating time 30

Total Time 1 30

Servings bowls

Calories 706kcal

Author Maria Koutsogiannis

Ingredients

For the yogurt base

For the boneless skinless chicken thighs:

450-560 grams (1-1.25 lbs) boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 heaping tbsp harissa paste
1 tbsp liquid honey
2 small garlic cloves, pressed
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp ground pepper

For the quinoa base

¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups chicken broth (or 2 cups water with 2 tsp Better than Bouillon Chicken Base)
1 lemon, zested
¼ tsp cinnamon

For the roasted vegetables

1 large sweet potato, skin on, cubed
1 medium red onion, chopped or wedges
6 medjool dates, pitted and chopped small
2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp kosher salt
½ tsp ground pepper

For serving

2-3 mini cucumbers, ribboned
fresh dill, roughly chopped
fresh parsley, roughly chopped
4 tsp sesame seeds
4 tsp harissa paste (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven for the vegetables - Preheat the oven to 400F and set aside a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
Mix the yogurt base - In a small bowl mix together the Greek yogurt, lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Set aside in the fridge.
Marinate the chicken - Add all of the chicken marinade ingredients to a medium bowl and whisk together to combine. Add all of the chicken thighs to the marinade, toss to fully coat the chicken thighs and let sit for 30 minutes on the counter or 1 hour in the refrigerator.
Roast the vegetables - To the baking sheet lined with parchment paper, toss the sweet potatoes, red onion and pitted & chopped dates with 2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Spread everything out in a single layer and bake for 25-30 minutes or until tender. Set aside.
Prep and cook the quinoa - While the chicken marinates, toast the slivered almonds in a pan on medium-low heat until golden and then set aside. Then, add the rinsed quinoa to a medium pot with the chicken broth and cook according to the package instructions. When cooked to your desired doneness, fluff with a fork and stir in the toasted almonds, lemon zest and ground cinnamon. Set aside.
Cook the chicken - After marinating for 30 minutes, cook the chicken. Heat a large oven-safe non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat for 2 minutes. Add the marinated chicken thighs and turn the heat down to medium-low, cook the chicken for 3 minutes, flip and cook for another 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and place the chicken in the oven for 10-12 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through, 165F. Let the chicken rest on a plate until cool enough to handle then chop into bite-sized pieces. Alternatively, you can cook the chicken thighs in the oven on a baking sheet in the 400F oven since it’s already on for the vegetables.
Assemble the bowls - Once the chicken is cooked, assemble 4 bowls by dividing the Greek yogurt evenly between 4 bowls, layering on the bottom of each bowl. Then layer cooked quinoa, chopped chicken, roasted vegetables and ribboned cucumber. Garnish each bowl with 1 tsp sesame seeds and (optional) 1 tsp harissa paste, fresh chopped parsley and/or fresh chopped dill and enjoy!

Notes

These bowls are great to meal prep for lunches. Alternatively, prep two elements of the bowls (for example make the quinoa and roast the vegetables) ahead of time, store in the fridge and then make the rest of the elements to complete the bowls for dinner.
If you love these bowls, try our Couscous + Shrimp Meal Prep Bowls

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