Moroccan Chicken Tagine
Moroccan Chicken Tagine uses a blend of warm spices like cumin, coriander, smoked paprika, turmeric, and cinnamon with chicken legs, butternut squash, dried apricots, and tomatoes simmered together. The slow cooking in a covered pot develops tender, fragrant chicken with a balanced sweet and savory flavor from the apricots and brown sugar. Lemon slices added during cooking provide a fresh brightness. Toasted almonds, mint leaves, and a pinch of chili flakes garnish the dish for texture and a subtle kick. This hearty tagine makes a comforting, flavorful meal especially suitable for cooler days.
Ingredients
- 4 chicken leg or 8 chicken thighs
- salt to season
- black pepper to season
- 3 tbsp olive oil , plus extra if needed
- 2 onion peeled and finely diced
- 3 garlic minced, cloves
- 2 tbsp ginger freshly grated
- 1 yellow bell pepper , sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin ground
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp Turmeric ground
- 1 cinnamon stick large
- 2 bay leaf
- 2 tsp brown sugar
- 400 g butternut squash peeled and cubed, 2 cups
- 60 g dried apricot roughly chopped, 2 oz
- 400 g cherry tomato or chopped tomatoes, in juice, 15 oz tin
- 500 ml chicken stock from a stock cube, hot, 2 cups
- 4 lemon halved, fresh, unwaxed, slices
- 4 tbsp almond slivered (flaked), to garnish
- mint leaves handful, to garnish
- Pinch chilli flakes dried, to garnish
- 1 lemon zesf only, to garnish
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry – do not rinse. Season the chicken liberally with salt and pepper.
- Heat the oil in a large casserole dish. Brown the chicken over medium-high heat for 3-5 minutes per side until golden. You might need to do this in batches. Set the chicken aside.
- Lower the heat and fry the onion, ginger, garlic, bell pepper for 3-5 minutes until slightly softened.
- Stir in the spices, salt, bay leaves and sugar.
- Add the squash, apricots, cherry tomatoes and stock. Break up the tomatoes with a wooden spoon and stir everything together. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer. Add the chicken and lemon slices.
- Cover the pot and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
- Uncover the pot, increase heat to medium and cook for a further 10 minutes until the liquid is slightly reduced and chicken is cooked through.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Remove the bay leaves, lemon slices and cinnamon stick.
- Dry fry the almonds in a heavy skillet until slightly toasted - watch they don’t burn!
- Scatter the almonds and dried chilli flakes over the tagine and serve with couscous or Israeli couscous (giant couscous). Garnish with mint leaves and lemon zest.
Notes
- Store leftover tagine in the fridge for up to three days and reheat thoroughly before serving.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 4 Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 602
% Daily Value*
| Calories | 602kcal | 30% |
| Carbohydrates | 48g | 16% |
| Protein | 28g | 56% |
| Fat | 35g | 54% |
| Saturated Fat | 7g | 35% |
| Cholesterol | 114mg | 38% |
| Sodium | 999mg | 42% |
| Potassium | 1425mg | 30% |
| Fiber | 8g | 32% |
| Sugar | 21g | 42% |
| Vitamin A | 11780IU | 236% |
| Vitamin C | 90.7mg | 101% |
| Calcium | 163mg | 16% |
| Iron | 4.7mg | 26% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.