Sure, you can cook up pasta in no time and whip up an omelet in a flash, but Sam Gugino insists you can also make sophisticated dishes, such as Duck Breast on Baby Vegetables, spending only 15 minutes in the kitchen to prepare them. Besides 60 recipes, he offers a strategy to help you quickly produce original, satisfying meals from scratch--and he doesn't mean a quick stir-fry! To prove his point,
I love the exotic smells and flavors of Moroccan cuisine. This dish was inspired by my collaboration with chef Matthew Kenney--a real Moroccan food devotee--on our book Matthew Kenney's Mediterranean Cooking. Serve it with pocketless pita bread or other flatbread.
Serves 4
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, about 6 ounces each
...or 18 ounces chicken tenders
1 medium onion, about 8 ounces
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon hot paprika
...or 3/4 teaspoon sweet paprika and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
5 cups chicken stock
2 medium zucchini, about 12 ounces
1/2 cup instant couscous
1 16-ounce can chickpeas
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 sprigs cilantro
Put the oil in a deep, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Cut the chicken into 1/2- to 3/4- inch cubes. Add to the skillet, raise the heat to high, and stir once or twice.
While the chicken browns, peel and quarter the onion and put in a food processor. Pulse until just chopped. Add the onion, cumin, ginger, and paprika to the skillet. Stir and cook for 1 minute. Add the stock to the skillet and stir with a wide wooden spoon, scraping any bits from the bottom. Cover and bring to a boil, about 2 minutes.
Meanwhile, trim the zucchini and slice in half lengthwise. Then cut crosswise into 1/4-inch wide half-moons. When the soup comes to a boil, add the zucchini and the couscous to the skillet, stir, and cover.
Open the can of chickpeas into a small colander, rinse, and drain briefly. Add to the skillet. Cover and let the soup return to a boil, then lower the heat slightly so the soup simmers briskly for 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Chop the leaves from the cilantro sprigs. Stir into the soup, cook for 1 minute, and serve in soup plates.
