Chicken Pinchos Morunos are the Spanish bar food that stopped me in my tracks in Seville. I found them at a hole in the wall bar with a grandmother in the kitchen, a plancha going at full heat, and the smell of cumin, smoked paprika, and charred chicken filling the entire street. I stood there eating three rounds before I even thought about sitting down. This recipe is inspired by Jose Andres and that afternoon in Seville, and it is as close as I have gotten to replicating what came off that plancha.
A Quick Look at the Recipe
✅ Recipe Name: Chicken Pinchos Morunos
🕒 Ready In: ~ 55 minutes
👪 Serves: 5 servings
🍽 Calories: ~ 317 per serving (estimated)
🥣 Main Ingredients: Chicken thighs, sherry vinegar, cumin, coriander, pimenton
👌 Difficulty: Easy
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Chicken Pinchos Morunos, which translates to "Moorish skewers," are a direct legacy of centuries of Moorish influence on Spanish cooking. The spice blend, cumin, coriander, turmeric, allspice, and smoked paprika, is rooted in North African and Middle Eastern cooking and arrived in Spain during the period of Moorish rule that shaped so much of Andalusian culture and cuisine. Growing up in Paris, where North African and Mediterranean flavors were always part of everyday life, this combination of spices felt immediately familiar the moment I tasted it in Seville. It is the kind of food that connects cultures across centuries and tastes like history on a skewer. This pairs nicely with Tinto de Verano!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
Overnight marinade, 10-minute cook. Most of the work happens in the fridge while you sleep.
That spice blend. Cumin, coriander, turmeric, allspice, smoked paprika, and sherry vinegar. Deeply Moorish and completely addictive.
Chicken thighs stay juicy. Cut into cubes, marinated, and cooked hot and fast on a grill pan or plancha. Perfectly charred every time.
Works with everything. Serve them over my Lebanese Rice or alongside my Fattoush Salad in a Pita Bowl for a full Spanish Mediterranean spread.
Chicken Pinchos Morunos Video
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Ingredient Notes
Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs: They stay juicy and slightly charred on the outside without drying out the way breast does under high heat on a plancha or grill pan. Cut them as evenly as possible so every cube cooks in the same time. Uneven pieces mean some are overcooked before others are done.
Pimentón de la Vera: Smoked Spanish paprika, known as pimentón de la Vera, which is made from peppers slowly dried over oak wood fires in the La Vera region of Extremadura. It has a deep, slightly sweet, intensely smoky flavor that is completely different from regular. If you love what Spanish smoked paprika does to a dish, my Hasselback Potatoes in the Air Fryer use the same variety for the same reason.
The Moorish Spice Blend: This is the heart of the recipe and the detail that connects pinchos morunos directly to its North African and Middle Eastern roots. Cumin and coriander are the warm, earthy backbone; turmeric adds a subtle golden warmth; allspice adds a slightly sweet depth, and pimenton de la Vera is the smoked Spanish paprika made from peppers dried over oak wood fires that makes this taste unmistakably Andalusian.
Sherry Vinegar: Adds a sharp, slightly nutty acidity that brightens the entire marinade and tenderizes the chicken slightly as it rests. If you do not have it, the lemon juice in the marinade carries enough acidity on its own.
Pro tip
If You Have Time
Marinate for longer if you can. Thirty minutes is the minimum, and the chicken will taste good. Longer is when the spices penetrate all the way through the meat, and the sherry vinegar and lemon juice tenderize it into something noticeably different. Plan ahead and the result is worth it every time.
Substitutions & Variations
No sherry vinegar? Leave it out. The lemon juice in the marinade provides enough acidity on its own. Red wine vinegar works as a substitute if you want to keep the vinegar element but the flavor will be slightly different.
No fresh cilantro? Flat-leaf parsley works beautifully in the same quantity. The flavor will be slightly different but still very good.
Want to serve it traditionally? In Seville pinchos morunos are served simply with crusty bread and a cold beer.
No grill pan? A cast iron skillet heated to very high heat works well. You will not get grill marks but the sear will be just as good. Make sure the pan is properly preheated before the skewers go in.
FAQ
Either works. If using wooden skewers soak them in water for at least 30 minutes before threading the chicken so they do not burn on the hot plancha. Metal skewers conduct heat and help cook the chicken from the inside which can slightly reduce cooking time.
Yes. Preheat the grill to high heat and oil the grates well. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side until charred and cooked through. The result will be slightly smokier than the plancha version which is not a bad thing at all.
Technically yes but the result will be noticeably drier. Chicken thighs have enough fat to stay juicy under the high heat of a plancha or grill pan in a way that breast simply does not. If you use breast, reduce the cooking time slightly and pull them the moment they hit 165F.
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⭐️ Recipe
Chicken Pinchos Morunos
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs extra fat removed and cut into 1.5 inch cubes
- 4 scallions white parts only, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- ½ tablespoon dried oregano
- 1.5 tablespoon pimenton de la Vera or smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1.5 tablespoon kosher salt or 1.5 teaspoon regular table salt
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoon sherry vinegar optional but recommended
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro chopped
- 5 garlic cloves grated or crushed
- A few grinds of black pepper
Finishing Garlic Oil
- ¼ cup Extra virgin olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 2 tablespoon chopped parsley
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
For serving:
- Lebanese Rice or Fattoush Salad in a Pita Bowl
Instructions
Make the marinade
- In a food processor, combine the olive oil, lemon juice, sherry vinegar if using, grated garlic, cumin, coriander, dried oregano, smoked paprika, turmeric, allspice, kosher salt, black pepper, scallion whites, and cilantro. The marinade should smell deeply fragrant and spiced. Taste it. It should be well seasoned and bold enough to stand up to three pounds of chicken.4 scallions, 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tsp ground coriander, ½ tbsp dried oregano, 1.5 tbsp pimenton de la Vera or smoked paprika, 1 tsp ground turmeric, ¼ tsp ground allspice, 1.5 tbsp kosher salt, ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice, 2 tbsp sherry vinegar, 5 garlic cloves, A few grinds of black pepper, ¼ cup fresh cilantro
Marinate the chicken
- Cut the chicken thighs into roughly 1.5-inch cubes, as evenly as possible, so they all cook at the same time. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss until every piece is evenly and generously coated. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Do not marinate longer than 4 hours as the lemon juice and vinegar may start to break down the texture of the meat.3.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
Skewer
- Remove the chicken from the fridge 15 minutes before cooking so it comes slightly toward room temperature. Remove each piece from the marinade letting any excess drip off. Thread onto 6 inch skewers, packing the pieces close together but not so tight that they cannot cook through.
Cook
- Heat a plancha or heavy grill pan over very high heat until smoking. A drop of water should evaporate immediately on contact. This high heat is essential for the char that makes pinchos morunos taste the way they should. Oil the surface with some olive oil.
- Lay the skewers on the hot surface without crowding. Cook for 5-6 minutes without moving them until a deep char develops on the bottom. Flip and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes until charred on the other side and the internal temperature of the thickest piece reaches 170F. If the skewers are browning too fast before they are cooked through, reduce the heat slightly and give them another minute or two.
Finishing Oil
- Mix all ingredients in a bowl and microwave for 30 seconds and top skewers with oil¼ cup Extra virgin olive oil, 3 garlic cloves, 2 tbsp chopped parsley, ½ tsp smoked paprika, 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Serve
- Remove from the heat and serve immediately. Pinchos morunos are best eaten hot straight off the plancha while the crust is still crispy. Serve over my Lebanese Rice or alongside my Fattoush Salad in a Pita Bowl for a full Mediterranean spread.
Did you make this recipe? Let me know!