Moroccan Chicken And Date Tagine Recipes

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 TAGINE WITH CHICKEN AND DATES

Steps:

• For sugared walnuts: Melt 1 T butter in a small saucepan and cook the walnuts over low heat until they are a shade darker and fragrant. Set aside to cool. When cool, remove from the pan into a bowl (leaving behind any remaining butter) and toss with the 1 T sugar. Set aside.
• In the tagine cooking vessel (or a broad saucepan with a cover, large enough to comfortably fit all 4 chicken thighs at once), heat 1 T olive oil over medium-high heat until hot. Salt and pepper the chicken thighs on both sides and sear until just golden brown, but not cooked through. Set them aside. The thighs will have rendered some fat; remove enough fat to leave only 1 T fat in the pan. Lower the heat to medium and saute the onion until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, cumin, coriander, cayenne, cinnamon, and ginger and continue to saute until the garlic is softened and the spices are toasted, about 2 minutes.
• Add the cider, chicken broth, and honey and bring to a boil. (Note: If you are using a tagine cooking vessel, add only half the liquid to begin with, then add the remaining liquid halfway through cooking time. Generally, a tagine is not large enough to accommodate all the cooking liquid at once.).
• Boil the liquid for about 5 minutes, until liquid has reduced slightly. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. To the broth mixture, add the sweet potato, half of the chickpeas and half of the dates. Nestle the chicken thighs in the pan and toss the remaining dates and chickpeas over the top. Cover the vessel and place it in the 375-degree oven for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until the sweet potato and chicken thighs are cooked though. (Note: If you are using a regular pan, baste the dish every 15 minutes or so. If using a tagine, add the second half of the cooking liquid halfway through cooking time, when some liquid has steamed away).
• When cooked, remove from the oven and taste for seasoning. Add more salt, pepper, or honey as desired. Serve over cous-cous with sugared walnuts and yogurt on the side. (Note: for extra richness, you can stir 1 T butter into the broth until melted and the broth is shiny).

MOROCCAN CHICKEN AND VEGETABLE TAGINE

Steps:

• Heat the broth in a tagine or in a thick-bottomed pot with a lid.
• Add the spices/herbs and seasonings to the broth and whisk to ensure there are no lumps. You can use a real whisk if you want, but I just use a fork.
• Finely dice the onion and place into the seasoned broth. Simmer, covered.
• Finely dice the chillis and add to the simmering onions. Keep the seeds if you like your food hot, otherwise remove the seeds before dicing.
• While this is simmering, dice the zucchini and yellow squash. Then cut the bell peppers into long strips. Set both aside in a bowl.
• Cut chicken breast in half the long way. Take each half and slice along the short axis so that the slices are not more than 1/4" thick. This is easiest to do if the chicken is partially frozen.
• Add the chicken to the simmering onions and chillis, ensuring that the slices are submerged.
• Add the zucchini, yellow squash, and bell peppers. Do not stir. It's ok if they are not submerged, the steam will cook them.
• Re-cover and simmer 45 minutes. Serve over couscous or rice. Alternatively, remove chicken and veggies, increase heat to "high", and reduce the sauce. Add chicken and veggies back, heat throughout, and serve as a stew.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE POCKETS

Steps:

• Place chicken in a greased 3- or 4-qt. slow cooker. Combine the salsa, 6 tablespoons pomegranate juice, 1/3 cup dates, honey, Moroccan seasoning and garlic powder; pour over chicken. Cook, covered, on low, until chicken is tender, 5-6 hours., Meanwhile, combine the carrots, mayonnaise, pomegranate seeds and remaining dates. Refrigerate, covered, until serving., Remove chicken from slow cooker; cool slightly. Skim fat from cooking juices. Shred chicken with 2 forks. Return chicken and juices to slow cooker. Stir in remaining pomegranate juice; heat through. Serve in pitas with carrot slaw and, if desired, cilantro.