Sautéed chicken with harissa and couscous
This recipe, by chef Jean Georges Vongerichten, is one of my favorite chicken recipes because it is full of flavor, exotic, easy to cook, and reminds one of my favorite trips - Tunisia. To be honest, any recipe that uses cumin and harissa is half way through to be part of my favorites list. If you happen to be wondering what in Epicurus name is harissa allow me to tell you. Harissa is a hot, delicious North African spice paste made of piri-piri, red chili pepper, and garlic. You can find it in any Middle Eastern markets and it is, generally, sold in cans. It keeps almost forever in your fridge. I like to transfer the paste into a plastic container with lid after opening the can just to prevent that the natural oxidation of the metal affects the flavor of the harissa. Personally, I find it really hot to eat by itself. Actually, one of the funniest episodes of our trip to Tunisia was exactly our first experience with harissa. It looked so good! We took a piece of bread, spread ...