Chef Zohra
Boulfaf (بولفاف)
Eid begins at the brazier with sheep liver kissed by coals, wrapped in caul fat, and shared fast with khobz while the house is still busy around the sacrifice.
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Brochettes de Poulet
Created by
The lighter skewer of the Moroccan grill: chicken cut small, rubbed with garlic, coriander, cumin, paprika, and honest ras el hanout, then charred quickly and tucked into khobz while everyone reaches.
Appetizers & Snacks
Moroccan
BBQ
Weeknight
Outdoor Dining
20 min
Active Time
12 min cook•1 hr 32 min total
Yield4 servings, 10 to 12 skewers
The first thing you smell is coriander hitting hot charcoal, then garlic, then the sweet red breath of paprika. Brochettes de poulet are the lighter skewer of the Moroccan grill, the one you order when the stall is crowded and everyone is eating with bread in hand. They don't ask for ceremony. They ask for a hot fire, honest spice, and chicken cut small enough that the marinade can hold it.
Cut the pieces even, then give them time in grated onion, garlic, fresh coriander, parsley, cumin, paprika, ginger, and a little ras el hanout if your blend is alive. That is the rule that decides the dish: the grill must be hot before the chicken touches it, so the outside browns fast while the inside stays juicy. A lukewarm grill dries chicken before it gives you those dark, fragrant edges.
Serve the skewers straight from the fire with khobz, olives, and a chopped tomato salad if the tomatoes are in their good season. Pull one more chair close. Une table, c'est une porte qu'on laisse ouverte, a table is a door you leave open, and brochettes are made for hands reaching across the plate.
Brochette is the French word that entered Moroccan restaurant and market speech during the 20th century, but qotban, skewered meat cooked over coals, is older in Arabic-speaking Morocco. Grill stalls and weekly souks from Oujda to Marrakech have long sold skewers of lamb, liver, kefta, and later chicken; poultry brochettes grew more common with modern urban poultry markets in the 20th century. There is no single Moroccan brochette, des cuisines marocaines, Moroccan cuisines plural, shows itself here too, with cumin stronger in some houses and paprika and fresh coriander louder in others.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
boneless skinless chicken thighs or breast
Quantity
750g
cut into 2.5 cm pieces
onion
Quantity
1 small
finely grated
garlic cloves
Quantity
3
minced to a paste
fresh coriander (cilantro), leaves and tender stems
Quantity
1/2 cup
finely chopped
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
1/4 cup
finely chopped
olive oil
Quantity
2 tbsp
sweet paprika
Quantity
2 tsp
ground cumin
Quantity
1 tsp
ground ginger
Quantity
1 tsp
ground turmeric
Quantity
1/2 tsp
ras el hanout
Quantity
1 tsp
from a fresh blend whose merchant can name the spices
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
1/2 tsp
fine sea salt
Quantity
1 1/4 tsp
fresh lemon juice
Quantity
1 tbsp
lemon (optional)
Quantity
1
cut into wedges for serving
round khobz, olives, and chopped tomato salad (optional)
Quantity
as needed
for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| boneless skinless chicken thighs or breastcut into 2.5 cm pieces | 750g |
| onionfinely grated | 1 small |
| garlic clovesminced to a paste | 3 |
| fresh coriander (cilantro), leaves and tender stemsfinely chopped | 1/2 cup |
| flat-leaf parsleyfinely chopped | 1/4 cup |
| olive oil | 2 tbsp |
| sweet paprika | 2 tsp |
| ground cumin | 1 tsp |
| ground ginger | 1 tsp |
| ground turmeric | 1/2 tsp |
| ras el hanoutfrom a fresh blend whose merchant can name the spices | 1 tsp |
| freshly ground black pepper | 1/2 tsp |
| fine sea salt | 1 1/4 tsp |
| fresh lemon juice | 1 tbsp |
| lemon (optional)cut into wedges for serving | 1 |
| round khobz, olives, and chopped tomato salad (optional)for serving | as needed |
Equipment Needed
- •10 to 12 metal skewers or soaked wooden skewers, about 20 cm long
- •Charcoal grill or heavy cast-iron grill pan
- •Wide glass or ceramic bowl for marinating
- •Instant-read thermometer
Instructions
- 1
Cut the chicken
Pat the chicken dry and cut it into pieces about 2.5 cm wide. Keep them close in size so they finish together; on a skewer, the smallest piece dries while the largest still waits.
- 2
Mix the marinade
In a wide bowl, mix the grated onion, garlic, coriander, parsley, olive oil, paprika, cumin, ginger, turmeric, ras el hanout, black pepper, salt, and lemon juice. If the onion is very wet, squeeze away a little liquid first. You want a thick green-red paste that clings to the chicken, not a bath.
With ras el hanout, on ne triche pas, you don't cheat. If your blend smells dusty or flat, leave it out and let cumin, paprika, garlic, and herbs carry the skewer honestly. - 3
Marinate the chicken
Add the chicken to the bowl and turn it with your hands until every piece is stained with spice and herbs. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 8 hours. If you are marinating longer than 2 hours, hold back the lemon juice and add it for the last 30 minutes, so the surface of the chicken stays firm.
- 4
Thread the skewers
If using wooden skewers, soak them while the chicken rests. Thread 5 or 6 pieces onto each skewer, close enough to look generous but not squeezed tight. The heat needs to touch the edges, because those browned edges are where the grill speaks.
- 5
Heat the grill
Prepare a charcoal grill until the coals are glowing and pale at the edges, or heat a grill pan until a drop of oil shimmers on contact. Oil the grate lightly. Put the skewers down only when the heat is ready; a cool grill sticks first and dries the chicken next.
- 6
Grill and turn
Grill the brochettes for 8 to 12 minutes, turning every 2 or 3 minutes, until the chicken is golden from the paprika and turmeric with dark marks at the edges. Do not baste with used marinade, it has held raw chicken. The center should reach 74 C, 165 F, or show opaque flesh with clear juices when you cut into the largest piece.
Breast cooks faster than thigh. Watch it closely and pull it from the fire as soon as it is done, before it turns dry. - 7
Rest and serve
Let the brochettes rest for 3 minutes, just long enough for the juices to settle. Scatter with a little fresh coriander if you like, squeeze lemon over at the table, and serve with round khobz, olives, and a chopped tomato salad. The bread is not decoration. It catches the spice, the oil, and the last good drops.
Chef Tips
- •La balance est dans les yeux, the scale is in the eyes. The marinade should stain the chicken gold-red and smell fresh with coriander and garlic, not heavy with dry spice.
- •Buy ras el hanout from someone who'll tell you what's in it, and use only a little here. These brochettes are not a spice cupboard emptied onto chicken.
- •Fresh lemon juice is right for this grill marinade. It is not a stand-in for preserved lemon in the tagines that ask for preserved lemon, that is another grammar.
- •If the coriander is yellowing or tired, don't cook this dish today in the same way. Use parsley, garlic, cumin, paprika, and good oil, and let the market tell you the truth.
- •Chicken breast is common at many grill stalls, but thigh gives a wider margin at home. Both work if the pieces are even and the fire is properly hot.
Advance Preparation
- •Marinate the chicken 1 to 8 hours ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. If resting more than 2 hours, add the lemon juice only for the last 30 minutes.
- •Thread the skewers up to 4 hours ahead, cover, and chill. Bring them out 20 minutes before grilling so the chill comes off.
- •Cooked brochettes keep for 2 days refrigerated. Rewarm gently in a covered skillet with a spoon of water and a thread of olive oil, but they taste fullest straight from the fire.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 370g)
Calories
585 calories
Total Fat
21 g
Saturated Fat
4 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
17 g
Cholesterol
165 mg
Sodium
1750 mg
Total Carbohydrates
51 g
Dietary Fiber
6 g
Sugars
8 g
Protein
45 g
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