Harissa & Orange Baked Chicken with Herb Yogurt
This baked orange harissa chicken recipe is sweet, spicy, and packed with flavor. Tender harissa paste chicken and fresh veggies combine on a sheet pan with orange slices and are baked to perfection. Then, they’re garnished with bright parsley and pomegranate seeds before being served warm with a refreshing Greek yogurt sauce! 
This North African-inspired harissa paste chicken is one of my all-time favorite recipes for any night of the week! I love bold, spicy meals, and this dish always delivers, offering complex flavor with a mix of sweet, savory, herbaceous, and spicy tastes that delight your taste buds with every bite. The sauce soaks into the chicken, keeping it nice and juicy, and creates a beautiful caramelized effect on the veggies for a dish worthy of a restaurant. Even better, all the ingredients combine on a single sheet pan and bake in under an hour, meaning this harissa chicken recipe is perfect for meal prep and busy weeknights! It’s sure to be an instant family favorite.
Why You Will Love This Easy Harissa Chicken Recipe
- The sauce! The orange harissa sauce is the perfect blend of sweet and spicy. You’ll want to add it to everything!
- With minimal prep time and a quick cooking time, this entire sheet-pan supper is ready to eat in under an hour for a quick weeknight meal yet is impressive enough to serve at a dinner party.
- You can enjoy these chicken and veggies on their own as a low-carb dinner, or serve them over couscous or rice to make your meal even more filling.
- The harissa chicken is crisp on the outside, tender and juicy in the center, and full of incredible flavor!
- Leftovers store and reheat well. So, you can cook once, and enjoy nutritious, homemade meals for several days.
- This recipe is gluten-free and nut-free, and can easily be made Paleo, too.
Ingredients You Will Need for This Harissa Paste Chicken
- Chicken: I love using bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs for this recipe because the dark meat stays juicier in the oven and the high temperature results in crispy skin. However, you can use bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts or even boneless, skinless chicken thighs if preferred.
- Veggies: A red bell pepper, red onion, and sweet potato are cut into cubes and roasted with the chicken, adding vitamins, fiber, and nutrients to the dish.
- Orange: Orange slices bake with the chicken and veggies, helping to tenderize the meat and infuse the entire meal with a bright, citrusy taste. I include both orange juice and orange zest to help thin out the paste while adding a bright, sweet taste.
- Garnishes: Fresh parsley adds a bright herbaceous finish, and pomegranate seeds contribute a pop of color with a crunchy texture and sweet, tart taste.
- Harissa chile paste: This forms the base of the sauce. Feel free to use more or less to taste.
- Honey: This adds a touch of sweetness to balance out the spice of the harissa paste. Feel free to use maple syrup if preferred.
- Extra virgin olive oil: This creates a smooth, sauce-like consistency without diluting the flavor.
- Salt and pepper: Adjust to taste.
- Greek yogurt: I recommend using whole milk or full-fat Greek yogurt for the creamiest consistency and richest taste, but any type of plain Greek yogurt will work.
- Mint: Fresh mint adds a bright, refreshing taste that balances some of the savory, spicy flavors of the chicken and veggies.
- Green onions: Use both the white and green parts of the onions to add a bit of tang to the sauce.
You can find a full list of ingredients in the recipe card below.
What is Harissa?
Harissa is sometimes described as being the ketchup or Sriracha of North Africa and the Middle East. It’s a red condiment common in African cuisine and Middle Eastern cooking and is often used as a harissa marinade, spread, or dipping sauce. That said, harissa has a unique flavor that is sweet, smoky, spicy, and complex. Originally from Tunisia, harissa is a type of chile sauce or paste made with dry red chiles, fresh garlic cloves, citrus, extra virgin olive oil, and warm spices such as cumin, coriander seeds, and caraway seeds. Available online and in the ethnic section of your local grocery stores, it is typically sold in small jars or cans. Or, you can easily make homemade harissa paste instead!
Can I Add Different Vegetables?
Yes! This harissa chicken recipe is a great way to use up any leftover veggies you have on hand. Just make sure they all have relatively equal baking times to prevent undercooking or burning. Options like carrots, butternut squash, and zucchini all work great with this dish.
Can I Make This Harissa Chicken Recipe Paleo?
Yes, to make this harissa orange baked chicken Paleo, you can use coconut yogurt in place of Greek yogurt. The sauce will likely be a little runnier and have a subtle coconut-flavored taste, but it will still be delicious and pairs wonderfully with the harissa chicken and vegetables.
How to Make Baked Orange Harissa Chicken
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
- Place the chicken thighs in a large bowl, and add all the orange harissa sauce ingredients. Then, toss to combine and coat the chicken in the sauce.
- Arrange the sliced peppers, sweet potato, red onion, and orange slices in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Place the harissa chicken thighs in between the veggies skin side up, and spoon any excess sauce from the bowl over the chicken and veggies.
- Bake for 45 minutes, keeping an eye on it in the last 15 minutes of cooking to ensure it doesn’t burn! Use a meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F.
- While the harissa chicken bakes, stir the yogurt, mint, and green onions in a bowl, and set it aside. Once the chicken is done baking, garnish it with chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds. Then, serve warm over couscous, white rice, or cauliflower rice with the herb yogurt sauce on the side!
Is This Harissa Chicken Recipe Spicy?
As it’s written, this harissa chicken recipe has lots of bold flavor, but it’s not all that spicy as the heat is balanced by the sweet ingredients and refreshing sauce. That said, if you love a bit of heat in your meals, you can make extra spicy chicken by adding a dash of hot sauce, using more harissa paste, or adding red chili peppers to amp up the spice level. Feel free to mix and match different ingredients to make this easy dinner your own! I recommend adding additional sauces or garnishes after cooking so you can taste and adjust as you go.
Can I Prepare Orange and Harissa Chicken in Advance?
Yes! You have a few options when it comes to preparing this harissa paste chicken ahead of time. First, you can bake the chicken and veggies, and prepare the yogurt sauce as usual. Once cool, you can transfer the protein and vegetables to an airtight container, and store them in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Then, store the yogurt sauce in a separate airtight container. When you’re ready to serve, reheat the dish, and serve it warm with the sauce. Alternatively, you can season the chicken and vegetables, and keep them in separate airtight containers for 1-2 days. Then, arrange them on a baking sheet, and bake them as usual when you’re ready to eat.
What About Leftovers?
Leftover harissa chicken and veggies will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 3-4 months. Store the mint yogurt sauce in a separate airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Thaw any frozen leftovers in the fridge overnight. Then, reheat them in the microwave, in a skillet over medium heat, or in the oven at 350 degrees just until warmed through. If the chicken begins to brown in the oven, cover the dish with foil, and continue to bake until heated through.
Here are a few more chicken recipes you might enjoy:
- Thai Red Curry Chicken Meatballs
- Honey Chili Chicken
- Mongolian Chicken
- Korean Gochujang Chicken with Scallion & Cilantro Chimichurri
- Za’atar Chicken with Tahini Lemon Sauce
- Herb & Citrus Chicken
If you make this Harissa Paste Chicken recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Harissa and Orange Baked Chicken with Herb Yogurt
Ingredients
- 4 skin-on bone-in chicken thighs
- 1 large red bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 red onion cut into ½ inch wide wedges
- 1 sweet potato halved lengthwise and then cut into ½ inch thick slices
- 1/2 navel orange halved and cut into
- 1 tbsp chopped parsley garnish
- 2 tbsp pomegranate seeds garnish
Orange Harissa Sauce
- 2 tbsp harissa paste
- 2 tbsp orange juice
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
Herb Yogurt
- 1/3 cup greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp chopped mint
- 2 tbsp chopped green onions
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
- Place the chicken thighs in a bowl, add in all of the orange harissa sauce ingredients and toss the chicken in the sauce to ensure it’s well coated. Set aside while you chop the veggies.
- Arrange the peppers, sweet potato, red onion and orange slices. Add the chicken thighs skin side up and spoon any of the excess sauce left in the bowl from the chicken over the veggies.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 45 minutes, keep an eye on the chicken in the final 15 minutes of cooking to ensure that it doesn’t burn. Use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature of the chicken, it should read 165 degrees.
- While the chicken is cooking stir together the yogurt, mint and green onions and set aside.
- Once the chicken is done cooking, garnish with chopped parsley and pomegranate seeds. Serve the chicken and veggies over couscous with the herb yogurt on the side.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published on February 14, 2018 and updated with new copy and photos on January 8, 2025.
Brilliant – Loved this dish
Perfection! The broiling at the end makes for some delectably crispy skin. Thank you for this recipe.
This looks and sounds delicious. I have store bought dry Harissa Spice mix. Can I use it mixed in with some olive oil instead of the paste? How much spice mix and olive oil would you suggest?
Yes you definitely can! I would use approx 2 tsp and 1 tbsp olive oil plus a bit of tomato paste. Let me know how it works
Very excited to try making this at home. I love chicken recipes that use Harissa – I’ve been compiling a list of them to try and compare to each other. Can’t wait to try this and report back how it turned out! Thank you so much for sharing!
I made this Harissa Chicken for my hubby for dinner last night and it was a huge hit! He said it was the best chicken ive ever made him. Thanks for the great recipe Carmen!