Authentic Moroccan Chicken Tagine Food

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Combine the spices in a small bowl and set aside. Zest the lemon. Combine 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest with 1 minced garlic clove; set aside.
• Season both sides of chicken pieces with 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or pan over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown the chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, flip the chicken pieces over and brown the other side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until they have browned at the edges but still retain their shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add a few tablespoons of water now and then if the pan gets too dark). Add the remaining minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the spices and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the broth, honey, remaining lemon zest, and ¼ teaspoon salt, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Add the chicken (with any accumulated juices) back in, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the carrots, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender-crisp, about 10 minutes more.
• Stir in the olives, reserved lemon zest-garlic mixture, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice; taste the sauce and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired. Serve with couscous.
• Note: Don't fret too much over trimming the chicken thighs. The skin gets removed midway through the cooking process and most of the fat will cook off and get drained. I usually just take kitchen shears and quickly snip off any excess skin or fat. Cracked green olives are olives that have been 'cracked' or split open before curing, allowing the brine or marinade to penetrate. You can find them in your supermarket's olive bar, or substitute any green olive that you like.
• Make-Ahead: After you have completed the step of cooking the carrots, the dish can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm on the stove until the chicken is heated through, then proceed to the step where the olives and remaining ingredients are added.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE RECIPE (AUTHENTIC & EASY)

Steps:

• Prepare your ingredients. Chop the vegetables and press the garlic.
• Place the heat diffuser on your stove and place your Deep pan on top of it. Make sure everything is stable before you start cooking.
• In the pan, add the chopped onion, oil, pressed garlic, spices, chicken drumsticks, and ½ cup of water. Mix until the drumsticks are entirely covered with the sauce.
• Cover your pan and let everything gently boil for 10 minutes on low heat. Stir from time to time.
• Pour 3-4 cups of water or until your chicken is covered with the sauce.
• Cover the cooking pot and let cook on low to medium heat until the drumsticks are almost ready. This might take from 30 to 40 minutes, depending on your chicken drumsticks. Check regularly and add a little of water if sauce evaporates.
• When the chicken is almost done, add the frozen peas, sliced carrots preserved lemons and half the quantity of parsley and coriander. Cover again and let cook until everything is all tender and well cooked. This can take between 20 to 30 minutes. Check regularly and add water whenever needed.
• Once everything is well cooked and if there is a lot of sauce, uncover your pot and let evaporate for a few minutes. The sauce should be thick, not watery.
• To serve your dish, gently position the chicken drumsticks and vegetables in the center of your plate and pour a little of the sauce on top.
• Decorate with marinated olives and some fresh parsley, and coriander.
• Serve hot or tepid, with fresh bread.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAJINE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix the garlic, cumin, ginger, paprika, salt and pepper, 1/2 cup grated onion, and the oil.
• Rinse the preserved lemons, and remove the pulp. RESERVE the lemon peel for later use.
• Add the lemon pulp to the mixing bowl. Add the chicken. Mix everything together and place in a large plastic bag to marinate overnight in the refrigerator. (Twenty-four hours really gives the chicken the best flavor.)
• In a large Dutch oven or casserole, place the chicken and marinade; add the stems of the parsley and cilantro, the rest of the grated onion, the powdered saffron and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, turn down to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
• Remove the cover, stir the chicken and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes or until the chicken is tender.
• Remove the chicken to a serving dish and cover with foil to keep warm. Keep sauce on stove and begin to reduce.
• Slice the preserved lemon peel into thin slices and add to the sauce along with the olives, parsley and cilantro. Reduce until the sauce is just a little thick. This shouldn't take more than 5 minutes at most.
• Uncover the chicken and remove the skin from the chicken. (It doesn't look pretty and who needs the extra fat.) Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Heat tagine, pan or wok over medium high heat, add almonds and dry fry until golden brown. Remove and set aside.
• Heat oil in same pan, then add garlic and onion and saute over low heat for 5 minutes.
• Chop chicken into 2 cm chunks, add to pan and cook for 10 minutes or so, turning regularly until browned on all sides.
• Meanwhile mix together harissa paste, water, currants, honey, cumin and cinnamon.
• Add mixture to chicken and mix well.
• Add chick peas, tomatoes (cut into sixths or eighths) and olives, if using. Mix well.
• Reduce heat to low, cover and cook.
• Cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
• Add more water if necessary, or if too wet, remove lid and reduce.
• Serve over couscous (preferably) or rice.
• Top with browned chopped almonds.

CLASSIC MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Finely dice the onions and sauté in a large pot with the spice mix, using the olive oil.
• When the onions and spice mix starts to give off a fragrant smell, add in the diced chicken. Fry this off for 2 minutes.
• Add the cans tomato, stock, 1 cup of water, chickpeas and the juice of half a lemon.
• Season with salt and pepper and let this simmer for 15 minutes. If it gets to thick too quickly add in more water.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Mix cinnamon, cumin, turmeric, coriander, ginger, mint, salt, and pepper together in a bowl. Measure out 1/2 cup spice mix and set the remaining aside for another use.
• Bring a small pot of water to a boil; add apricots and raisins. Cook until fruit is soft, about 5 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of cooking water.
• Pour enough olive oil into a large skillet or Dutch oven to coat the bottom; turn heat to medium. Coat chicken with the 1/2 cup spice mix and place in the hot oil; cook until golden brown and releases easily from the skillet, 3 to 4 minutes per side.
• Mix onion and garlic into skillet with chicken; cook and stir until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add apricots, raisins, reserved 1/2 cup water from fruit, chicken broth, and honey; reduce heat to low and cover. Cook until chicken is very tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Serve chicken garnished with cilantro and almonds.