Spiced Chicken & Couscous

Total Time: 30 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 10 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 3 cups fat-free chicken broth
• 2 cups water
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
• 1 1/3 cups couscous
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs or 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
• 3 zucchini (medium or large cut into strips, see preparation notes below)
• 2 carrots, cut into 3 inch strips
• 1/4 cup currants or 1/4 cup dark raisin
• 3 tablespoons blanched slivered almonds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Recipe

• 1 to prepare the zucchini, cut into 3 inch logs and split lengthwise in halves. trim out the soft seeded center. cut the halves lengthwise into strips about 1/2 inch thick on the outside. for color variation, you can replace one of the zucchini with a yellow summer squash.
• 2 mix together the spices in a small bowl.
• 3 sprinkle 1/3 of the spice blend and rub into the chicken cubes.
• 4 in a large saucepan bring the water, broth, hot sauce to a boil. add in the remaining spice blend. reduce to a high simmer and cook 3 minutes.
• 5 place the couscous in a covered bowl along with the lemon juice. add 1 1/3 cups of the hot spiced broth from the saucepan and cover. let it sit until you are ready to serve.
• 6 add the chicken and carrots to the simmering broth and cook for 3 minutes. add the zucchini and cook an additional 2 minutes. (i like my squash fairly crisp, if you prefer it more tender then add it a bit earlier. just make sure the total cooking time is the same.) add the currants or raisins and cook for a final minute.
• 7 using a fork fluff the couscous and place the grains on a serving plate.
• 8 using a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken, veggies and raisins to the top of the couscous. (alternately, you can shape the couscous in a ring and place the meat and vegetables in the center.).
• 9 sprinkle almonds on top.
• 10 serve the spicy broth alongside. if you like a thicker sauce, quickly whisk in a bit of cornstarch or arrowroot into the broth and bring to a quick boil for a minute to thicken.