This ras el hanout-marinated grilled chicken salad is full of delicious Mediterranean spices and flavors. Its star is juicy and tender grilled chicken marinated in a Greek yogurt and homemade ras el hanout spice mix. The spices infuse the meat and give it a delicious and complex flavor. The yogurt gently tenderizes the chicken without making it rubbery.
For more delicious Mediterranean flavors also check out this Mediterranean chicken seasoning!
Ras el hanout seasoning blend ingredients:
Ras el hanout is a complex spice blend and there is no definite rule as to which spices belong in it. But, some ingredients are common among the many different versions of ras el hanout, including cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, coriander and clove.
The spices I use in my ras el hanout are:
- cardamom
- coriander
- clove
- fennel seeds
- cumin
- fenugreek
- black peppercorns
- cinnamon
The blend has an earthy flavor that is balanced by the citrusy cardamom and a hint of sweetness from cinnamon and clove.
You can make ras el hanout either from whole spice seeds or from already ground spices. If you use spice seeds, you'll need to grind them before mixing the blend together.
How to make the salad:
See full ingredient amounts and instructions in the recipe card below!
Marinate and grill the chicken:
Step 1. Gather your ingredients: Greek yogurt, fresh lemon, ras el hanout, salt and chicken breast.
Step 2. Whisk yogurt, lemon juice, ras el hanout and salt together in a large bowl. Stir in the chicken chunks. Cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours or up to 10 hours.
Step 3. Take the chicken out and lightly shake off excess marinade. (You can also use a paper towel to lightly dab off excess marinade.) Skewer the chicken and grill on a grill or a grill pan.
Prepare the salad ingredients:
Step 4. Finely chop fresh parsley, quarter or chop artichoke hearts, core and dice tomatoes and slice and quarter cucumber.
Make the lemon sumac dressing:
Step 5. Gather the dressing ingredients: ground sumac, fresh lemon, cumin, salt and olive oil.
Step 6. Whisk all ingredients together.
Recipe note:
The sumac will settle to the bottom, so be sure to spoon the dressing on the salad immediately after whisking it together.
Recipe notes & tips:
- Cutting the chicken into small pieces (rather than marinating whole chicken breasts) ensures that the marinade can infuse the meat well. It also makes for a really short grilling time (about 10 minutes).
- Be sure to keep a little bit of marinade on the chicken to give it a velvety, flavorful and slightly tangy coating. That coating not only tastes delicious, it also protects the meat during grilling and keeps it from getting dry or tough.
How to serve the salad:
Add salad greens onto plates. Top the greens with tomato, artichoke hearts, kalamata olives and cucumber. Sprinkle crumbled feta cheese and parsley on top. Distribute the grilled chicken chunks between the plates. Drizzle with the dressing.
How to store leftovers:
Store the individual salad components (vegetables, chicken and dressing) in separate, airtight containers in the fridge for up to a day. Once you've spooned the dressing onto the salad it's best to eat it.
More delicious homemade spice blends:
- Mediterranean Spice Rub for Chicken5 Minutes
- Sumac Dry Rub for Chicken5 Minutes
- Fennel Spice Rub5 Minutes
- Italian Chicken Seasoning5 Minutes
See all spice blend recipes→
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how you liked it in the comments below! Thank you!
Full Printable Recipe
Ras el Hanout-Spiced Grilled Chicken Salad with Sumac Dressing
Equipment:
- measuring cups and spoons
- spice grinder or mortar and pestle (if using spice seeds)
- citrus juicer
- knife and cutting board
- mixing bowl
- whisk
- rubber spatula
- paper towels
- digital meat thermometer (recommended)
Ingredients:
For the ras el hanout spice blend (makes about 2 tablespoons):*
- 1 teaspoon cardamom seeds (or 1 teaspoon ground cardamom)
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds (or ½ teaspoon ground coriander)
- ½ teaspoon whole cloves (or ⅜ teaspoon ground clove)
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (or ¾ teaspoon ground fennel seeds)
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (or ¾ teaspoon ground cumin)
- 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds (or ¾ teaspoon ground fenugreek)
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns (or 1 teaspoon ground black pepper)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the chicken:
- ½ cup plain, whole milk Greek yogurt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ras el hanout
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
- 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized cubes
For the salad:
- 2 cups salad greens
- 4 artichoke hearts, drained (you can use plain from a can or marinated from a jar)
- ½ cucumber, sliced and quartered
- 12 kalamata olives
- 1 large or 2 medium-sized tomatoes, diced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley (you need about ⅓ of a bunch of flat leaf parsley for that)
- ¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
For the dressing:
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons ground sumac
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions:
For the ras el hanout spice blend:
- If you're using spice seeds, grind all seeds in a spice grinder or in a mortar with a pestle, then mix in the cinnamon. If you're using ground spices, mix all spices together.
For the chicken:
- Whisk yogurt, ras el hanout, salt and lemon juice together in a bowl. Mix in the chicken, cover and marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours and up to 10 hours.
- Shake excess marinade off the chicken or dab the chicken lightly with a paper towel to remove excess marinade.
- Grill the chicken either on the grill or on a grill pan. (Heat the grill pan on the stovetop on high heat or heat it in the oven at 450 degrees F.) The chicken is ready when its internal temperature registers 165 degrees F. (This should take about 10 minutes.) Set aside to cool a bit.
For the salad:
- Assemble the salad: start with the salad greens, then add artichoke hearts, cucumber, olives and tomato. Sprinkle feta and parsley on top, then add the chicken.
For the dressing:
- Whisk all ingredients together, then spoon the dressing onto the salad. Serve immediately.**
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