Easy Ras El Hanout Chicken Tray Bake

This tasty ras el hanout chicken tray bake has become our favourite midweek meal! It's healthy, spicy and so easy to make at the end of a long day.

You know I love using spices to create tasty meals and ras el hanout has become one of my favourites. It means 'top of the shop' in Arabic and is a blend of the seller's favourite spices. It's a popular spice blend in Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria.

It may not be a fixed spice blend but the ones you can buy usually contain cumin, cinnamon, coriander and rose petals. I love it as it's so fragrant and perfect for the kind of North African and Middle Eastern inspired meals I often create. Its perfect for this ras el hanout chicken tray bake recipe and my Moroccan spiced salmon recipe. It also makes a change from another similar recipe we love, my harissa chicken tray bake.

Buy or Make your own Ras el Hanout?

Ok, you can make your own ras el hanout but I buy mine. After all, it's a great spice blend for adding flavour to a simple meal. This ras el hanout chicken tray bake is so easy to make and if I had to mix up the spice blend first then it would definitely take longer! Not much longer but longer all the same.

There are so many other things I want to spend time doing, I just don't have time to make it myself these days. Plus, I love that the one I buy has rose petals in.

However, if you do want to make your own then BBC Good Food has a great recipe for it.

What's in this ras el hanout chicken?

This simple ras el hanout chicken is just chicken, potatoes and vegetables. I coat everything in a mixture of oil, vinegar and ras el hanout before baking it in the oven.

What vegetables are with the chicken?

I usually like to use potatoes, cauliflower, onions and peppers but you can vary the vegetables. Why not add aubergine, courgette or sweet potato?

You can even use a tin of drained and rinsed chickpeas as the ras el hanout flavours them beautifully and they roast really well too.

How can you adapt this Moroccan Chicken Tray Bake?

The main way to adapt this easy tray bake is to use different vegetables. It really is a very versatile recipe so just use whatever vegetables you love roasted.

You can adapt the meat you use too. I usually use chicken legs and thighs with the skin on so they stay moist as they are cooking. However, you can use chicken breast too. Just be careful that it doesn't dry out in the oven.

You can also vary the spice blend. Why not make this into baharat chicken or za-'atar chicken instead?

What if you want a vegetarian ras el hanout tray bake?

If we fancy a meat-free tray bake then I coat the vegetables in the ras el hanout, oil and vinegar mix and roast them until they are almost cooked. I then add some halloumi and roast for another 10 minutes.

Another way of making a it a bit more substantial and adding some protein is to add some chickpeas. They are beautiful when roasted and go perfectly in this.

How do you store this ras el hanout chicken?

This North African inspired tray bake keeps well for a couple of days after it has been cooked. Just store it in an airtight container in the fridge. I usually reheat it in the microwave but you can reheat it in the oven too.

How to Make Ras el Hanout Chicken Step by Step

First make the marinade for the chicken. Put crushed garlic, olive oil, white wine vinegar and ras el hanout in a bowl.

Put the chicken thighs or legs in and coat them well in the marinade

Prepare the vegetables and put them in a roasting tin. Coat in a little oil and more ras el hanout. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

Take the vegetables out of the oven and place the chicken thighs on top of the vegetables. Return the roasting tin to the oven for 30 - 40 minutes.

Take the chicken out of the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe

Ras el Hanout Chicken

Corina Blum

This tasty ras el hanout chicken tray bake has become our favourite midweek meal! It's healthy, spicy and so easy to make at the end of a long day.

5 from 12 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine moroccan, North African

Servings 4

Calories 746 kcal

Ingredients

 

MetricUS Customary

 

1x2x3x

For the Chicken Marinade

• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tablespoon white wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon ras el hanout
• 1 kg chicken thighs

Ingredients for the Tray Bake

• 300 g potatoes halved and parboiled
• 1 red pepper deseeded and cut into thick slices
• 1 cauliflower Cut into 8ths
• 1 onion peeled and cut into quarters
• 1 teaspoon ras el hanout
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

 

• Prepare the marinade for and coat the chicken thighs in it. Leave for an hour or up to 24 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 200°c
• Put all the vegetables into a roasting tin and toss with the oil and ras el hanout. Put in the oven for 10 minutes.
• Take the roasting tin out of the oven and place the chicken on top of the vegetables. Put back in the oven for 30-40 minutes.

Notes

Nutritional information is approximate and a guideline only.

Nutrition

Calories: 746kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 46gFat: 53gSaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 245mgSodium: 247mgPotassium: 1355mgFiber: 6gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1126IUVitamin C: 118mgCalcium: 98mgIron: 5mg

Keyword ras el hanout chicken

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More Recipes you might like

If you love easy tray bake recipes then do check out one of these recipes:

Harissa Chicken Tray Bake

Easy Sausage Tray Bake

Brazilian Fish Bake

You might also like my chicken Marrakesh! And, do also check out my easy spicy recipes collection.

Keep in touch

Do let me know if you make this ras el hanout chicken or any of my other recipes. I love to get feedback from readers.

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