Amazing honey roasted chicken drumsticks with couscous. Packed with flavor from Moroccan spices and honey with melt in your mouth vegetables couscous.
Morocco at its best! If you are looking for a great comfort food for the family, you’re in for a treat with this honey roasted chicken drumsticks and vegetables couscous!
How to make the vegetables couscous?
You want to cut your vegetables evenly so they cook in the same amount of time.
For the root vegetables, season with a mix of spice, sweet and salty with honey, kosher salt and Ras el Hanout.
Then, spread the vegetables on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Roast in the oven to concentrate the flavor and caramelize the vegetables. This will be the base to make the couscous vegetables sauce.
You will then fry the rest of the vegetables in a Dutch oven including onions, zucchini and peppers and added the caramelized root vegetables together. Top up the vegetables with the broth and let the flavors blend.
How to make the honey roasted chicken drumsticks?
First, you need a good spice rub with at its base Ras el Hanout (a traditional Moroccan spice blend), coriander seeds, cumin as well as smoked paprika and chili flakes for a bit of heat. With a bit of oil and broth you marinate the chicken drumsticks until they absorb the flavor.
The secret is in the three step cooking process. You will first fry them in the Dutch oven, then roast the chicken with basted honey under high heat in the oven at 450F. This will caramelize the meat and crisp the skin.
The next step is to put your honey roasted chicken drumsticks on top of the vegetables in the Dutch oven, cover and simmer until the meat falls off the bone and the vegetables are cooked through.
Let’s talk couscous
I just love couscous. It’s quick to make (under 5 minutes), It goes great with sauce as it sucks up the sauce and makes heavenly bites.
There are many ways to serve couscous and it really comes down to taste. You can serve it with preserved lemons, olive oil and parsley or with raisins, dried fruit and nuts. It really comes down to how you want to complement your meat and vegetables!
In this case, I would go with oil, parsley and lemon zest as flavors. They will balance out the rich and sweet flavors in the honey roasted chicken and the vegetables to go with the couscous. You can find the recipe here for Lemony couscous.
Ingredients
- 2 lb. of chicken drumsticks
- 2 tbsp. Ras el Hanout
- 1 tbsp. of coriander seeds
- 1 tbsp. cumin
- 1 tbsp. smoked paprika
- 1 tsp chili flakes
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1/4 cup chicken broth
- 1 tsp Kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp ground pepper
- 1/4 cup honey
- 3 cups Butternut squash, cut into one inch cubes
- 2 zucchini, cut in thick slices
- 2 medium carrots, cut in thick slices
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 1 red pepper, sliced
- 1 yellow pepper, sliced
- 1 turnip, cut into one inch cubes
- 1 sweet potato, cut into one inch cubes
- 1 1/2 cup of canned chickpeas
- 6 cups of vegetable broth
Instructions
- Start your oven at 450F.
- Mix together 2 tbsp. of Ras el Hanout, 1 tbsp. of coriander seeds, 1 tbsp. of cumin, 1 tbsp. of smoked paprika, 1 tsp. of chili flakes, 1/2 tsp. of kosher salt, 2 tbsp. of olive oil and 1/4 cup of chicken stock for the chicken marinade.
- Cut 2 small slices on each side of the chicken drumstick. This will help the marinade penetrate. Add the chicken and let it marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Add 2 tbsp. of honey, 2 tbsp. of Ras el Hanout, 1/2 tsp. of Kosher salt in another bowl. Add the turnip, squash, carrots and sweet potatoes and mix well.
- Add parchment paper on a large baking sheet and spread the vegetables with their marinade.
- Put the vegetables in the oven and roast for 25 minutes.
- In the meantime, in a large Dutch oven, add 2 tbsp. of olive oil. Once hot, add the marinated chicken.
- Let it cook for 5 minutes on one side and then 3 minutes on the other side. Put them aside on a plate.
- Add the sliced onions and fry on low heat for 5 minutes. Add the zucchini and peppers to the leftover chicken marinade, mix and add to the onions.
- Cook for 5 minutes and then add the root vegetables.
- Put the chicken drumsticks on the same baking sheet and baste with room temperature honey.
- Cook in the oven at 450F for 10 minutes.
- Add the vegetable broth until it covers the vegetables and bring to a boil.
- Add the drumsticks on top of the vegetables, cover and simmer for 40 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.
- Serve over a bed of couscous.
Nutrition Information
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
