Name: Curried Vegetable Couscous and Chicken with Lime-Yogurt Sauce
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: ¼ cup plain whole-milk yogurt; 2 teaspoons lime juice; Salt and pepper; 4 (6- to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts , trimmed; 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil; 1 onion , chopped fine; ½ head cauliflower (1 pound), cored and cut into 1-inch florets; 1 pound Swiss chard , stemmed and cut into 1-inch pieces; 2 teaspoons curry powder; 2 garlic cloves , minced; 1¼ cups chicken broth; 1 cup couscous; ¼ cup raisins; 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

Why This Recipe Works

In addition to being fast and easy to cook, it also absorbs lots of flavor from its cooking liquid. With couscous in mind, we devised a simple, full-flavored curry packed with vegetables and paired it with chicken breasts for an easy-prep, no-fuss protein. We seared the breasts on one side, giving the chicken some color and creating a flavorful fond, and then set them aside to turn our focus to the vegetables. Cauliflower is a classic addition to curry, but for even more hearty flavor we used Swiss chard as well. After blooming and stirring in curry powder and garlic, we added chicken broth, nestled the chicken on top, covered the pan, and let everything simmer. Once the chicken was cooked through, we removed it and stirred in the couscous, allowing it to steam and soak up the flavorful curry. Raisins plumped right in the couscous promised a sweet, juicy contrast. Served with a cool lime-yogurt sauce, this meal was as flavor-packed as it was simple.

Before You Begin

Be sure to use chicken breasts that are roughly the same size to ensure even cooking. You will need a 12-inch skillet with a tight-fitting lid for this recipe.

Instructions

Whisk yogurt, lime juice, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper together in bowl; cover and refrigerate until serving. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add chicken and cook until golden brown on 1 side, 4 to 6 minutes; transfer to plate.

Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to now-empty skillet and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and ¼ teaspoon salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in cauliflower. Add chard, a handful at a time, and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Stir in curry powder and garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth and nestle chicken, browned side up, into skillet, along with any accumulated juices. Bring to simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer gently until chicken registers 160 degrees, about 10 minutes.

Transfer chicken to plate, tent loosely with aluminum foil, and let rest while preparing couscous. Stir couscous and raisins into vegetable-broth mixture. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand for 5 minutes.

Fluff couscous mixture with fork and season with salt and pepper to taste. Arrange chicken on top of couscous mixture, then drizzle with yogurt mixture and sprinkle with cilantro before serving.