Chicken Tagine
A North African stew of chicken marinated in Moroccan spices and braised with onion, olives, and preserved lemon. The preserved lemon gives its signature salty-tangy note — serve with couscous or bread.
Ingredients
- Bone-in chicken (legs/thighs) · cut into pieces700 g
- Onion · sliced1
- Garlic · minced3 cloves
- Olive oil2 tbsp
- Chicken stock or water250 ml
- Green olives60 g
- Preserved lemon (or lemon + salt) · sliced0.5
- Cilantro & parsley · chopped1 handful
- Spices
- Turmeric1 tsp
- Ground cumin1 tsp
- Ground ginger0.5 tsp
- Paprika1 tsp
- Cinnamon · optional1 pinch
- Salt & pepper1 to taste
Steps
- ⏲ 30 min
Rub the chicken with the spices (turmeric, cumin, ginger, paprika, cinnamon), salt, pepper, and garlic and marinate 30 minutes (skippable if short on time).
- ⏲ 5 min
Heat olive oil in a wide pot (or tagine) and brown the chicken all over, then set aside.
- ⏲ 5 min
Soften the onion in the same pot.
- ⏲ 30 min
Return the chicken, add the stock, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook gently 30–35 minutes until tender.
- ⏲ 10 min
Add the olives and preserved lemon, uncover, and simmer 10 minutes more to reduce the sauce.
- ⏲ 1 min
Scatter with cilantro and parsley and serve with couscous or bread.
Tips & Variations
Variations
- Lamb tagine: Use lamb for a richer stew (longer cooking).
- Fruit tagine: Add dried apricots, prunes, or dates for sweetness.
- Vegetarian: Chickpeas, carrots, and squash instead of meat.
- Couscous: The near-constant companion to serve alongside.
Tips
- Spice and marinate the chicken first for deep flavor.
- Brown the chicken, then braise low and slow so it turns tender.
- Preserved lemon and olives give tagine its signature salty-tangy note.
- No tagine pot? A heavy lidded pot works fine.
- Reduce the sauce until just saucy to soak up with bread or couscous.
The basics behind this dish
- Browning and the Maillard ReactionMeat fails to brown for one of three reasons: it is wet, the pan is cool, or you put too much in at once. Plus how the brown film stuck to the pan becomes your sauce.
- Cooking Meat: Temperature, Resting, and Cutting Against the GrainDoneness is a core temperature, not a number of minutes. What resting actually does, how to handle a thick cut, and why the direction you slice changes the texture.
- Knife Skills: Grip, Cuts, and Why Size MattersHow you hold the knife matters more than how fast you cut. The pinch grip, the claw hand, and why uniform size is a cooking decision rather than a cosmetic one.
More of the same kind
More from this country
Moroccan →
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