This spicy harissa and persimmon chicken is a little sweet, a little spicy, and packed with flavor! The chicken is marinated in harissa and Greek yogurt for the most tender and flavorful chicken that pairs beautifully with the charred persimmons. It's the perfect one-skillet winter meal!
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Why You'll Love This Harissa Chicken!
Quick and easy! With almost no prep time, you can marinate the chicken the night before so that the next day dinner is ready to serve in less than 30 minutes!
Super moist and flavorful! Marinating the chicken in Greek yogurt gently tenderizes the meat and gives it more time to soak in the harissa flavor. And searing the chicken breasts before baking locks in the flavor for super moist, tender chicken.
This spicy persimmon chicken is delicious with a simple side like rice, couscous, roasted potatoes, or my sourdough naan!
Ingredient Notes
You just need a few ingredients to make this harissa roast chicken with persimmons!
Chicken - I prefer chicken breasts but this recipe would also be great with chicken thighs!
Fuyu Persimmons - The persimmons are the star of the show! More on them below.
Shallot - I love shallots because they have a slightly milder flavor than onions, but red onion would also work great in this dish!
Greek Yogurt - I love marinating chicken in Greek yogurt because it adds a slight tang and helps keep the chicken moist. But you can also use plain full-fat yogurt or even buttermilk to get the same flavor.
Harissa Paste - Harissa is a North African spicy chili paste that originated in Tunisia. It's spicy, smoky, and super flavorful! You can add as much or as little as you prefer to suit your taste. You can find harissa paste online or at stores like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.
White Wine - This is optional, but a little bit of white wine helps deglaze the pan.
Herbs - I originally used fresh thyme in this recipe, but I actually like fresh mint a lot more!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Choose Persimmons
There are two main types of persimmons that you're likely to see at the grocery store come October-Januray, hachiya and fuyu. Hachiya persimmons are elongated and shaped like a heart or acorn, they are very astringent before they are ripe and personally, I'm just not a fan. You don't want to eat them unless they are extremely soft (almost soupy on the inside). But for this chicken skillet we want to use fuyu persimmons.
Fuyu persimmons are shaped like a tomato and have a delicately sweet flavor. They can be eaten when they are still very firm and are still delicious when they soften. I prefer them on the firmer side, especially for this recipe. I recommend choosing fuyu persimmons that are very firm because then they will last at home for about two weeks if stored in the crisper draw in the fridge. Fuyu persimmons are also delicious in my winter persimmon salad!
How to Make Harissa & Persimmon Chicken
In a small bowl, whisk together all the marinade ingredients.
Place the chicken breasts in a shallow dish or Ziploc bag, cover with the marinade and toss to coat. Let marinate for 1 hour at room temperature. (You can also marinate the chicken in the fridge overnight).
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add in just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan (about 1 tablespoon).
Sear the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side or until there is a golden brown crust. [You can shake off excess marinade before searing but don't wipe it all off as that's what gives you the flavorful crust.]
Pour in the wine to deglaze the pan, then toss in the sliced shallots and persimmons.
Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake at 425°F for 10-15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through. [Smaller, thinner breasts will only have to bake for 5-10 minutes, but thicker breasts will need 15-20 minutes.]
If desired, you can switch to broil for 2-4 minutes to get some more color and char on the chicken and persimmons.
Use an instant thermometer to check when the chicken is done so that it doesn't get overcooked! Chicken breasts should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F, but I like to pull them out around 160-162°F because they'll continue cooking as they rest.
Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
Garnish with fresh mint and an extra drizzle of honey (or harissa for extra spice).
If desired you can make a quick pan sauce with the drippings. Remove the chicken and persimmons from the pan and place the skillet back on the stove over medium heat. Bring the leftover liquid to a simmer and reduce down until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 2-3 minutes). Add the sliced chicken back in and toss to coat in the sauce.
Recipe FAQ's
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
The best part of a yogurt marinade is that isn't very acidic and slowly tenderizes the chicken, so it can marinate for up to 24 hours.
Absolutely! Just be aware that thighs might take longer than breasts to cook through.
Nope! I always use my favorite Lodge cast iron skillet to make this chicken, but you can use any pan that can go from the stovetop to the oven (stainless steel is also a good choice). Or you can sear the chicken on the stove and then transfer to a baking dish to finish in the oven.
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Harissa and Persimmon Chicken
Special Equipment
Ingredients
Harissa Yogurt Marinade
- 1 cup full-fat Greek yogurt, substitute plain full-fat yogurt
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 2-4 teaspoons harissa paste, to taste
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Chicken Skillet
- 3 large chicken breasts
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons white cooking wine, optional
- 2 large shallots, quartered
- 4 fuyu persimmons, sliced
- 1 teaspoon fresh mint
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together all the marinade ingredients. Place the chicken breasts in a shallow dish or Ziploc bag, cover with the marinade and toss to coat. Let marinate for 1 hour at room temperature. (You can also marinate the chicken in the fridge overnight).
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add in just enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan (about 1 tablespoon).
- Sear the chicken breasts for 3-4 minutes on each side or until there is a golden brown crust. [You can shake off excess marinade before searing but don't wipe it all off as that's what gives you the flavorful crust.]
- Pour in the wine to deglaze the pan, then toss in the sliced shallots and persimmons.
- Transfer the skillet to the oven and bake at 425°F for 10-15 minutes or until the chicken is fully cooked through. [Smaller, thinner breasts will only have to bake for 5-10 minutes, but thicker breasts will need 15-20 minutes.]
- If desired, you can switch to broil for 2-4 minutes to get some more color and char on the chicken and persimmons.
- Use an instant thermometer to check when the chicken is done so that it doesn't get overcooked! Chicken breasts should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165°F, but I like to pull them out around 160-162°F because they'll continue cooking as they rest.
- Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Garnish with fresh mint and an extra drizzle of honey (or harissa for extra spice).
- If desired you can make a quick pan sauce with the drippings. Remove the chicken and persimmons from the pan and place the skillet back on the stove over medium heat. Bring the leftover liquid to a simmer and reduce down until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 2-3 minutes). Add the sliced chicken back in and toss to coat in the sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Pamela G says
Sweet neighbors gifted us persimmons- and an open invite to spend 6 months with family in Pakistani 😁 - so tried this recipe! Holy monkeys it’s amazing!!!! Flavorful, pretty, delicious.
Beth says
I baked a whole chicken, which turned out juicy, tender and full of flavor. This marinade is versitile and I will use it again.
Taylor says
I made this recipe tonight and it was INCREDIBLE! I wanted to use a few persimmons I had and I'm so glad I chose to make this recipe. I used an open bottle of Sauv Blanc and 2% greek yogurt instead of full-fat because it's all I had on hand. Oh, and also added an additional tsp of fresh thyme because it's my fav. Thank you so much!!
Alice | SkinnySpatula says
Harissa and chicken are a match made in heaven!
Anna says
Such a great dish, I absolutely adore harissa and have been using it a lot in my kitchen. This chicken must taste incredible!
Raimy says
I recently got some Huju persimmons from a friend and I'm planning on making this dish in the next couple days! What would you suggest as the best side dish for it?
Kyleigh Sage says
I really like it with something simple like couscous or rice!