Middle Eastern Chicken and Eggplant with Cous Cous

I was sitting on the couch flipping through channels when I finally decided to stick to the usual - The Food Network, channel 56, and saw Jamie Oliver's 15 minute meals was on. He was trying to prove that a chicken tagine can be cooked in 15 minutes... surely there was some TV magic in there but nonetheless, I was engulfed.

I decided to replicate this recipe.. in not-so-15-minute style...using a few different ingredients and spices. He kept it pretty simple which I really liked but I just added a few extra layers of spices to make it mine.

This recipe might seem like a bit of work because there are so many different spices involved. But I promise you, once you buy these spices.. that's it! You have them on hand for a very long time and you can use it over and over again. I cook a lot of Indian, Thai, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean meals at home, so I always have this kicking around. If you don't have something on this list, it's okay to substitute - obviously! It's quite simple and quick really... give it a try.

Makes 4
Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients:
2 pcs Chicken breasts (cut in cite size cubes)
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground tumeric
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp chili or cayenne powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt and pepper
Dash of sumach
1 medium eggplant (aubergine for my UK folks)
2 cloves of garlic
1 zucchini (courgette) cut in cubes
1 cup diced tomatoes (I used canned and no sodium but you can use fresh as well)

For Cous Cous:

1 cup of dry white cous cous
2 cups boiling hot water
1 tsp ground tumeric
pinch of sea salt
* mix all together in a large bowl, cover with a plate and set aside to cook and puff up

Directions:

• Place eggplant on a plate and cook in the microwave for 5 minutes. When finished, cut in the middle and set aside for later
• Season and rub the chicken cubes with the garam masala, ground cumin, ground coriander, ground tumeric, paprika, chili or cayenne powder, onion powder and salt & pepper.
• In a well oiled large skillet on medium heat, cook the chicken until you have a golden brown crust.  Push the chicken to the sides of the pan to make room for the eggplant
• Place eggplant in the middle of the pan to get a nice char or sear on it for that smoky flavour
• While the eggplant is cooking some more, in another frying pan heat up some oil on medium heat and toss in the zucchini. When you get start seeing brown spots on the zucchini, toss in the garlic until it's fully incorporated then add the tomatoes.
• The eggplant and chicken should be cooked by now. You can start plating!
• In a large plate, create a bed of the now very yellow and flavourful cous cous. Place your eggplant right in the middle and surround it with the chicken. Spoon over the zucchini and tomato mixture and sprinkle a dash of sumach 
• For extra layers of flavour, I toasted some sesame seeds and yellow and brown mustard seeds then crushed it in a pestle and mortar to get a crumble and sprinkled that over the dish. Added a bit more whole sesame seeds on top as well for extra garnish

Enjoy!!!