Harissa Grilled Chicken

5 from 1 vote

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This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ grilled chicken.

Here we are at August already. How did that happen and who took my Summer? Heck where did the year go? In keeping the grill busy this season, I thought maybe something spiced up would do the trick the other evening. This chicken sits overnight in harissa, a North African, namely Tunisian, spicy paste that kicks up the flavor factor.

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

Harissa is a North African hot chili paste or sauce commonly eaten in Tunisia and Morocco whose main ingredients are chili peppers, tomatoes and Paprika. This fiery red sauce is served as a condiment with many Tunisian dishes, particularly tagines. Though most closely associated with Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria it is a standard ingredient of North African cuisine.

I’ve been fortunate to travel to South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe and twice to my beloved Egypt, but the other North African countries like Morocco and Tunisia are on the radar plan to discover.

Recipes for harissa vary according to the household and region. Variations can include the addition of cumin, red peppers, garlic, coriander, and lemon juice. This is my take on it.

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

Besides soaked, dried red chiles the harissa usually has toasted, ground seeds, kosher salt, garlic, a nice orange zest strip, vinegar, rose water and oil. At least mine does. You can get the recipe here if you want to make it, or buy from the market.

I’m seeing it more and more these days in the condiment section or any Middle Eastern market should carry it.

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

I use just the chicken drumsticks in this one because there was a great deal at the market.

I placed them all in a Ziploc plastic bag, added the harissa paste and some honey and let them marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

When it came time to grill these up I thought some beautiful grilled tomatoes and lemons would be a nice addition and hen served, squeezed the grilled lemon on top of the harissa grilled chicken. I like to cook the darker meat of the chicken to 180°F instead of the required 165°F to ensure they are tender drumsticks. I want to have the meat fall off the bone tender when I bite into it and the skin to be all rendered and crispy.

That little bit of acid from the lemon is perfect and believe me, this is not too hot. Grilling seems to mellow the heat in the harissa, but the flavor is wonderful. The honey gives a nice glaze and added sweetness. It’s tangy, spicy and smokey. A perfect mixture of spices to transport you to the flavors of Morocco and Tunisia. Enjoy!

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it! www.keviniscooking.com

Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken

5 from 1 vote
A sweet, sticky and delicious grilled chicken recipe 
Servings: 4 servings
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 24 minutes
Total: 29 minutes

Ingredients 

  • 2 lbs chicken drumsticks
  • 1 cup harissa paste
  • 1/4 cup honey + 1 tbsp separated
  • 4 lemons
  • 1 cup baby tomatoes
  • cilantro for garnish

Instructions 

  • In a small bowl mix the harissa paste, honey and the juice from 1 lemon.
  • Rinse and pat dry the chicken. Place in a plastic bag and add the harissa honey mixture and seal. Refrigerate overnight. (See Note 1)
  • Start grill and heat to 350°F.
  • Grill for about 12 minutes on each side. Using tongs carefully lift the drumsticks off the grill to ensure that the skin is not sticking to the grill. (See Note 2)
  • In the last 3 minutes of grilling add the other three lemons cut in half to grill along with the tomatoes.
  • Remove from grill and allow to rest 5 minutes then brush with remaining tablespoon of honey.
  • Serve immediately with extra harissa paste on the side with chopped cilantro for garnish.

Notes

1. I marinate the chicken overnight for maximum flavor penetration, but feel free to coat and grill, basting with more if needed while grilling. The reason I marinate overnight is to keep the grill closed while the chicken is grilling. That keeps an even temperature.
2. I think cooking the drumsticks to the internal temperature of 180°F works well with the dark meat of the chicken where the required internal temperature is usually 165°F.

Nutrition

Calories: 415kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 139mg | Sodium: 1076mg | Potassium: 839mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 28g | Vitamin A: 950IU | Vitamin C: 73.6mg | Calcium: 61mg | Iron: 2.3mg

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Course: Main
Cuisine: American
Have You Made This Recipe? Let Me Know on InstagramTag @keviniscooking or tag me #keviniscooking!

This Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken has just the right kiss of heat and the honey sweetens this up for a twist on the regular BBQ chicken. The family loves it!

Kevin

Whether in the kitchen or on the grill, you’ll find me cooking American favorites with a love for BBQ, Mexican and Tex Mex. I’m passionate about making tasty food because life’s too short to be bland!

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24 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    Great, now I’m drooling on my keyboard. Thanks a lot, Kevin. 😉

    Honestly, these look so good and I love how simple they are to prepare! We’ve been loving this summer and basically living off food from the grill. I’m glad there are still plenty of days to try this one out…

    1. I made these a second time since this post because they are so easy and the char flavor with the harissa is so good. Squeeze that lemon on top and dig in! Have a great weekend. 🙂

    1. Thanks Jeff. There is something primal about chewing on ribs and grilled chicken. Love is all spiced up, too. How is your Chicago summer is going?

  2. I adore harissa, although too much messes with my insides as I’m not as tolerant to chilli like I used to be. I’m sure that when you get to Morocco you’ll fall in love with it. I know I did and I’d love to return one day!

    1. I love it too and like to add a little orange peel in my harissa, so tasty! When we went to India Dave’s mom went to Morocco and we were so bummed she didn’t wait for us to join her. Another time! Thanks John.

  3. Can’t believe it’s August either – summer only started about a month ago here in London! I certainly have to make the most of the last (only) days of summer so your Honey Glazed Harissa Grilled Chicken recipe just came at the right time 🙂

  4. Hey Kevin! This is drool worthy chicken my friend! Add a salad and I’d be very happy! I so agree with you, I don’t know where summer went! We always talk about things we want to do in the summer and then all of a sudden it’s gone and we didn’t do half of those things! Enjoy these glorious weekends while they last!

    1. Thanks Dorothy! Took the dogs hiking Sunday and had a blast. Came home and roasted a leg of lamb. Weekend was stellar! Hope the same for you two. 🙂

  5. This looks like one epic meal for the grill this weekend! I saw harissa in the store the other day…I should have grabbed it! And those grilled lemons…they look incredible! 🙂

  6. What a great recipe, Kevin! I love anything spicy and have been loving dark meat a lot more lately over white meat. So much more moist! I totally agree with ya in cooking the dark meat a little longer. I feel the same way.

    Wow, you’ve certainly travelled a lot haven’t you? Must be nice to go to all those different places and experience the culture and food. I’m all about that. Good food makes me happy 🙂 !! It’s like, ‘tell me about your trip…’ and I’m like ‘well, we ate at such and such….’ lol. Oh well!

    Hope you have a great weekend! Cheers!

    1. I must say I always thought of traveling and not until I made a few changes in my life 18 years ago did we start to do it.. So now instead of thinking of a place I follow through and visit it! So much more fun. 🙂 And YES, we do eat our way through the country. Our most recent trip was to India and Dal Makhani (Creamy Lentils) was one we tried everywhere we went. So fun!

    1. Hey there Matt, thanks for stopping by. With a little lemon after grilling these are just wonderful. Honey and harissa are a great combo to play off your tongue.
      I’m glad we have crossed paths, just checked out your site, too. Thanks for clearing up the Bluenoser question I had. I travel often and hope one day to make it up there to Nova Scotia. Cheers!