About the Recipe
Tagine refers to a North African, or more specifically Moroccan, ceramic or terracotta clay vessel used to cook stews in. A tagine consists of two pieces, a base and a lid, and is usually made from terracotta.
The lid has a small hole to allow some steam to escape.
Reference is also made to the actual stew. Stews are slow cooked in the tagine and can be made up of almost anything, from fish and vegetables to lamb or chicken.
The unique conical shape traps the steam, which in turn is converted to moisture, so very little moisture is needed when making a tagine.
Traditionally, tagines were cooked over the gentle heat of coals.
Most tagines are slow cooked using tougher, cheaper cuts of meat and are usually spicy (not hot).
A typical tagine could consist of spicy, fruity, savoury, sour and bitter flavours, all combined into one.
When preparing a tagine, it does not require initial browning of the meat. I, however, prefer the browning of the meat, which gives it a more intense flavour.
Ingredients
Chicken tagine
4 chicken thighs & 4 chicken drumsticks (or 1 chicken, portioned)
5 ml whole cumin, toasted and crushed
5 ml whole coriander, toasted and crushed
2 ml ground turmeric
Pinch of saffron
5 ml fresh ginger, grated
Salt and pepper
30–40 ml olive oil
2 onions, sliced
2 garlic cloves
75–100 ml chicken stock
1–2 cinnamon sticks
2 tomatoes, diced
50 g green olives, pitted
50 g black olives, pitted
3 wedges preserved lemon
10 ml argan oil
Flesh removed and skin cut into strips
½ cup dried apricots
Seed and nut couscous
225 g couscous
2–3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Juice of 1–2 lemons
225 ml chicken or vegetable stock
5 tbsp chopped parsley
1 tbsp mint
3 spring onions, sliced
2 tbsp chopped chives
20 g sunflower seeds
20 g green pumpkin seeds
20 g black and white sesame seeds
20 g linseeds
20 g crushed cashew nuts
20 g toasted flaked almonds
Salt and pepper
Preparation
Chicken tagine
Combine the chicken with the spices and seasoning and leave to marinate for an hour.
Heat half the olive oil and gently brown the chicken. Remove and reserve.
Fry the remaining oil and fry the onion, ginger and garlic until soft.
Add the chicken to the saucepan with the onion.
Add the stock, cinnamon and tomatoes.
Cover and cook either on the stove if a cast iron base is used, or in the oven at 160ºC if the tagine is made of clay.
Cook for one hour, add the lemons and olives, and cook for approximately another half an hour.
Serve with plain couscous or with a seed couscous, as I have done.
Seed and nut couscous
Heat the stock, add the lemon juice and olive oil.
Add the couscous, stir well, cover and leave to stand for 5–6 minutes before separating the grains with a fork.
Add the seeds and nuts.
Just before service, add the fresh herbs and spring onions.
Tips
Try using prunes, raisins, dates and even apples.
The addition of nuts also delivers great results.
Often, a combination of meats are used, like lamb and beef.
Honey also adds an interesting combination.
Traditionally, only hard cracked green olives were used.
Other vegetables, like carrot, may also be added.
Before using a terracotta tagine (like a chicken baker), soak in water before use.
If you do not have a tagine, use a clay chicken baker.
Do not fry onions in clay, but instead use a pan and then transfer to the tagine.
Argan Oil
Almond-like nuts from an argan tree (Argania spinosa) are removed from its fruits, shelled and roasted, ground and pressed. Argan oil has a distinctive, almost meaty aroma. 100 kg of fruit produce 2 kg of oil.
Rich in Vit E.
Goats were originally responsible for eating the fruits and then excreting the nuts, which were then in turn used to make the oil.