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I feel like everyone is in need of a good, quick and easy dinner.
We are in that final week before the holiday craziness that is Thanksgiving begins, and let’s be honest, as much as we all love thinking about Thanksgiving and what we’ll be making/eating (or maybe that’s just me), we also HAVE to eat in the meantime. <–whoa, crazy run on sentence…my grammar is highly embarrassing.
So that clearly means we need easy meals. Life is busy and easy meals are where it’s at right now. I mean, right?!?
No really, life is so busy and for someone who does not know how to use the word NO it’s exceptionally busy. Especially during this special, most awesome time of year. I love it and hate it at the same time.
UGH. The life of a yes, yes, yes, new idea, yes, person. <– that’s me.
But also, I think I would go insane if I wasn’t doing something like ALL the time. Or at least that’s what I keep telling myself. I also keep telling myself that if there’s one new goal that I make super important for myself it’s getting enough sleep…unfortunately…not doing so hot on this task. Oops! I am trying (well not really), but sometimes I lay in bed and my brain just won’t turn off. I think about recipes, photos, tasks to do, comments, emails (ugh) and new ideas. I have decided I have some serious issues.
I am only twenty-flippin-two. What twenty-two year old thinks this way? Or even thinks this much?
I wonder…
Also, I think I might be at my most creative/imaginative peak during the months of November + December. My brain just wanders like a like a little kid. Thinking up one holiday thing after another.
It’s actually stressing me out that I don’t have enough time do all the fun things I have come up with.
Again, weirdo issues here for sure.
Double also, my dad told me the other day that this time of year is really hard for some people. I could not believe this. Sorry if I am being insensitive to anyone, it’s just that this is the happiest two months of the year for me. NO JOKE.
Wow, I am such a dork. I should probably not be allowed to ramble like this. I better talk about this Crockpot Honey Harissa Chicken already before I loose you guys for good!
Wait, did I lose you?!? HOLD ON.
We have a serious chicken dinner situation that needs to be discussed.
This chicken here?? it’s the best! It’s so simple and easy… and so flavorful… even pretty dang healthy too! Yeah, fist pump! Wow, my dorkiness is really shining through today like no other!
Here’s the deal. You add everything to the crockpot (well not the ingredients for the rice), cover and cook on low and slow until you are ready for dinner. The chicken is spicy, but sweet and tangy too, which you all know is one of my all time favorite combos. It’s a mix of Moroccan, Indian and then a little Tieghan…oh wait, that’s not a flavor. Hmm, maybe I should make it one, like a Tieghan’s Spice??
Nah, that’s just too weird, even for me.
Point is, this chicken is awesome and I really hope you make it… like this week or next, the sooner the better.
AND of course, don’t forget the rice cause… CARBS. You really can’t live without carbs. Or maybe YOU can, but I can’t. My mom taught me to embrace them. Especially carbs in the form of rice, pasta and bread. This rice in particular is one of my favorites…obviously. You guys know how obsessed I am with pomegranates. I do think they are one of my favorite fruits. I even find de-seeding them soothing, I think it calms me.
And now I am done. Hoping all this weirdness going on with my thoughts today will be gone tomorrow. I blame it all on Monday. <–Always blame Monday, duh.
And then make this Crockpot Harissa Chicken with pretty jeweled pomegranate rice. It will make everything all good again!
Crockpot Honey Harissa Chicken with Chickpeas, Feta and Jeweled Pomegranate Rice.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup [harissa | https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/homemade-harissa-spicy-red-pepper-sauce/]
- 1/2 cup full-fat canned coconut milk
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2-4 tablespoons honey (depending on your taste, I used 3 tablespoons)
- 1 in chipotle chile adobo, minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon stick or 1/2 cinnamon
- 2-4 carrots, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 1/2-2 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs OR boneless chicken breasts
- pepper, to taste
- 1 ounce can chickpeas, drained + rinsed, 14
- chopped cilantro + mint, for serving
- feta cheese, fro topping
Jeweled Pomegranate Rice
- 1 cup uncooked jasmine rice
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 teaspoon saffron, optional
- 1-2 tablespoons molasses
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/3 cup roasted, salted pistachios
- 1/3 cup sliced almonds
- zest from 1 orange
- arils from one pomegranate
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- In the bowl of a crockpot (oven directions in the notes), combine the harissa, coconut milk, soy sauce, honey, chipotle chile, ginger and garlic. Add the cinnamon stick, carrots, bell pepper and chicken toss with the sauce to combine. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or on HIGH for 4-6 hours.
- Just before serving, preheat the broiler to HIGH. Carefully remove the chicken from the sauce and place on a greased baking sheet. Place under the broiler for 30 seconds to 1 minute or until the chicken is crisp and golden. Watch close as the broiler works FAST.
- Stir the chickpeas and chicken back into the sauce. Warm through, about 5 minutes. Serve with the jeweled pomegranate rice (recipe below) and fresh cilantro + mint and feta cheese.
Jeweled Pomegranate Rice
- Add the coconut milk and water to a medium size pot. Bring to a low boil and then add the rice + saffron. Stir to combine, then place the lid on the pot and turn the heat down to the lowest setting possible. Allow the rice to cook ten minutes on low and then turn the heat off completely and let the rice sit on the stove, covered for another 15-20 minutes (don't take any peeks inside!). After 15-20 minutes remove the lid and fluff the rice with a fork. When ready to eat, drizzle in 1-2 tablespoons molasses. Stir in the the butter, pistachios, almonds, orange zest and all the pomegranate arils. *Once the pomegranate arils are added, the rice should be eaten right away. Just a note, rice can cook differently for everyone, this is just what works for me.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
But really, this chicken? that rice? it’s everything Monday (or any day) NEEDS – trust me!
P.S. Sorry if this post made you want to pull your hair out. Tomorrow I have chocolate to share so I should be on my A game – COOL. And maybe tomorrow we’ll chat about my little brother, and him not being able to make a grilled cheese at fifteen. Pampered much? I think so. Am I jealous? Possibly.
Do you have suggestions of what could be subbed in / when for a vegetarian version? I loved this the first time I made it, and would like to do a veggie version (in addition to the carrots, chickpeas and bell pepper). I would guess the overall time in slow cooker could be reduced, and am a bit unsure when to add other veggies (onions, mushroom, potato?, greens…)
Hey LAuren! Try swapping the chicken for a head of cauliflower. I would slow cooker 3 hours. Please let me know if you have any other questions. Glad you love this recipe. Thanks so much and happy Thanksgiving! xTieghan
made this in the instant pot today and it was fantastic. because it’s summer there were no pomegranates but I found pomegranate syrup in the ethnic food section, so I drizzled 1tsp of that into the rice. (also forgot to add the butter to the rice. oops.) the only harissa paste I found in the store was green pepper harissa, so that’s what I used for that as well.
even without the butter this was so good! the sweet rice and the spicy chicken and veggies were a great balance. my girlfriend and I went back for seconds!
Ah that is amazing! I am so glad this turned out so well for you, thank you!
This looks so good. I love recipes that use harissa, it adds such an interesting flavor to all the dishes I make with it! Thank you so much for sharing. Can’t wait to make this at home!
Thank you Billy! I am so glad you like this recipe!
This looks delicious! I am planning on making this this weekend for a dinner party. Had a question though- I want to use 3 pounds of chicken. Do you suggest I double the recipe? Particularly for the sauce?
HI! Yes, I would just double the recipe, sauce included as you will want lots of that! Please let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love this recipe! Happy Holiday’s ? 🙂
I just came across this recipe and the flavor sounds AMAZING. Do you think it’s possible to use tofu instead of chicken? Any suggestions on how to go about doing that?
I have not used tofu and am not familiar with cooking with tofu, but I think it would work great! Please let me know if you have any other questions. Hope you love this recipe! ?
Curious if the tofu worked out. I’m thinking of replacing the chicken with eggplant or butternut squash.
You managed to do it yet again! Superb! My husband said “if it were any other cook’s recipe I’d be nervous, but everything she makes just turn she out!” He’s right, it does.
That rice though…I could make a meal of it by itself. If anyone is making it, do NOT omit any ingredient, it’s awesome.
Awh that is so sweet! Thank you Sherry, I am so glad you and your husband enjoy my recipes so much!
Oh goodness! I made this a few days ago for dinner and although I did some tweaking, (like using regular milk instead of coconut and using guerilla peppers in the harissa, since that’s what I had) – it was delicious! I will absolutely be making this again. I really enjoyed the feta and fresh cilantro, they really add to the dish. I also added beets to the carrots, just for more vegetables, and that was real good too. Thanks for posting the recipe!
Hi Catherine! So happy you liked it! It sounds delicious with your substations and the beets! Thank you so much for making it.
Love the recipe! Made tonight and I can’t help myself from dipping bread in it and tasting. Thanks!
So happy you like it Tee! Thank you!
does this dish taste like coconut? The ingredients look amazing and Id love to make it but i have a few anti-coconut diners in my home.
Hey Susan! You really do not taste the coconut much, but please feel fry to use regular milk in it’s place. let me know if you have questions. Thank you!
I made this tonight and it was such a hit. Thank you so much!!!
So happy to hear that! Thank you Sariah!
I discovered this recipe on Pinterest a few months back and it has become a go-to favorite in my house (and visitors to my house). I love that I can make the chicken on a weeknight and serve it over brown rice, or spend a bit more time on the weekend to make the jeweled rice to accompany it. For vegetarians, I roast a little eggplant that can be served with the main stew, when I can’t find pomegranates I’ve had great luck subbing out fresh currants. So much flexibility, you can’t go wrong.
This is so awesome! Thanks so much Crystal!
This looks amazing & I love how cute you are! But, I wanted to te you that you have a line that reads “we all need “CRABS”…. In stead of carbs. I had to giggle!
“You really can’t live without crabs” is the line…sorry. Just thought you might want to correct it. ?
Oh my gosh! THANK YOU! I cannot believe I missed this, heading to correct that now! Glad you got a laugh though! 🙂
AHH!! What A typo!! Thanks for letting me know!! Changing now!!
Hi There! I found your website while browsing the interwebz for recipes and made this Crockpot Honey Harissa Chicken yesterday! We had a bit of difficult time finding the Harissa (I’ve only ever found it once, successfully [in another state]) but used Chili Pepper Paste, instead. We also decided to do Quinoa on the side with a bit of the coconut milk, and some turmeric and cumin sprinkled in instead of the rice.
All the chicken was gone (no surprise there!) so I’m having the leftover quinoa and veggies/sauce for lunch today. Might be even better the second day!
Thank you and I look forward to trying several other recipes from your site! I’ll tag my photo (not quite as pretty as yours) on insta!
Sounds amazing!! SO happy you guys liked it!! Please do tag me!! I love seeing!! Thanks Emily
Hi!!!
I made this last night for dinner and it was sublime!!! Everyone loved it! The flavours are amazing together, rice so unique and delicious!! Will certainly try this for a dinner party one day with a big salad on the side!!!
I had to do without the chilli in adobo as I am in France and cannot find that here but even without that it was absolutely gorgeous!!
Thank you for you blog, your recipes, your gorgeous photos!! It s always a sure hit when I try one of your recipes!!!
Keep it up!!!
AHH Thank you so much!! I’m so happy you liked it!! And thank you for the kind words ? ?
Hi Tieghan,
Devastatingly, my boyfriend cannot have pistachios due to an allergy. He can have pecans, almonds, and peanuts, however. Do you think any of those would complement this dish appropriately? Perhaps roasted salted peanuts?
HI!! Roasted peanuts will be amazing as would roasted almonds + pecans!! All three will be just as delish! Let me know if you have questions. Thanks so much and I hope you love this recipe!