Recipe: Moroccan Chicken Tagine
Country: Morocco
Cuisine: Moroccan Cuisine
Morocco
Morocco, a country situated in North Africa with a coastline on North Atlantic Ocean as well as the Mediterranean Sea. It shares the borders with Algeria to the east and Western Sahara to the south. Morocco, whose capital is Rabat, is a mountainous country with its biggest city Casablanca, also a major port city, is an industrial and commercial centre.
A doorway to Africa, in this country you will come across impressive mountains, incredible diversity, ancient cities, extensive desserts and affectionate people whose hospitality will fascinate your Moroccan experience.
Morocco is the only country in Africa that has coastal exposure to both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea. The climate of Morocco is typically Mediterranean with mild winters and hot summers.
There are so many things to explore in this country from its open markets to colourful spices and beautiful earthly clay pots to give a new cultural experience. It’s an incredibly diverse country that offers everything from extensive coastlines, vast mountains and desert landscapes. There are picturesque markets which are perfect for shopping for traditional and local things.
Moroccan Cuisine
The cuisine of Moroccan is influenced by its interactions with other countries over the centuries. Moroccan cuisine is a mix of Amazighi, Arab, Andalusian, and Mediterranean cuisine which makes its dishes even more unique in taste and textures.
With its fertile land, Morocco is a hub of Mediterranean fruits and vegetables even the tropical fruits is also found here that make the local food even tastier. The base of the Moroccan dishes are Beef, Goat, Mutton, Lamb, Seafood and Chicken are the common meats that are being cooked in a variety of ways.
The flavouring ingredients which dominate this cuisine are Lemon pickles, Argon oil, Olive oil and Dried fruits. In staple ingredients include bread and couscous. When it comes to spices, Moroccan dishes are made with various spices which are used extensively throughout all dishes. Common spices include Cinnamon, Cumin, Turmeric, Ginger, Paprika, Saffron, Coriander and Mace Cloves to name a few.
Tagine
Tagine, an earthenware in which Maghrebi dish is cooked, is a shallow earthen pot from an ancient Greek saucepan. Tajine is a shallow clay vessel with a cone-shaped lid. Today, the cooking pot is primarily prepared in the Middle East and North Africa. Tagine cooking and its pots are very famous in Morocco and you can easily see these colourful pots on the streets of Morocco.
Moroccan Tagine dishes are slow-cooked, typically made with chicken, lamb and vegetables as main ingredients. Flavours are added with pickled lemons, spices, and olive oil which make the Tagine dishes even more appetizing.
Moroccan Chicken Tagine
This is a traditional Moroccan dish which is very famous in the whole country. This is a local delicacy that can be seen in many restaurants in different variations. Tagine is used in this recipes which is its uniqueness as well as give this dish an amazing flavours and aroma. In Chicken Tagine, chicken is braised with different Mediterranean ingredients such as olives, preserved lemons, garlic, onions and other spices.
This recipe is slow-cooked and quite an easy process which is cooked in Tagine but you don’t need one to make this dish. You can use a large cast-iron pan or a heavy covered skillet will work, too. If preserved lemons are not available then lemon zest or lemon juice can be used to give colours and flavours to the dish.
This dish is served on the couscous but if you want you can serve it with rice as well. In this recipe, chicken is so tender coated with Moroccan spices and with added flavours of olives and lemon which are very delectable to taste buds. Some Mediterranean dried fruits are also added to balance the flavours in the dish.
Preparation Time: 2 hours Serves: 3 to 4
Cooking Time: 1 to 2 hours
Ingredients
· Chicken Breast, cut into large cubes 250 gm
· Chicken Thighs or Wings 550 gm
· Harissa paste 1 tbsp
· Olive oil 1 tbsp
· Sliced Onion 1
· Lemon juice or zest 1 tbsp
· Crushed Garlic cloves 2
· Ground Cinnamon ½ tsp
· Ground cumin ½ tsp
· Ground ginger ½ tsp
· Ground turmeric ½ tsp
· Chilli flakes 1 tsp
· Dried apricots, quartered 100 gm
· Chopped tomatoes around 350 gm
· Salt as per taste
· Black Pepper powder
· Fresh chopped mint 2 tbsp
· Fresh chopped parsley 2 tbsp
· Raisins handful
Cooking Instructions
1. Put chicken breast and thighs with the harissa paste in a bowl and mix it well. Cover with cling film and keep in the fridge for around two hours.
2. Heat the olive oil in the base of a tagine dish, or heavy casserole pan. Fry the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the chicken and set aside.
3. Fry the onion for five minutes, or until soft.
5. Now, add the garlic and all the spices into it and cook it for a while.
6. Add the chicken back to the dish, with this add lemon zest or juice, apricots and tomatoes.
7. Add the salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to the boil, cover with the lid and simmer for one hour.
8. Check the tenderness of the dish if it is soft then it is ready to serve.
9. Add the mint and parsley at the end.
10. Serve with couscous and Greek yoghurt and garnish it with raisins or almonds.
11. Rice can also be used in the place of couscous.
Enjoy this North African delicacy and tell us your experience!
Comments