Nestled under all that parsley, cilantro and mint is a chicken thigh, and it’s on top of the apricot and almond couscous. And bedded down in the middle is a big, honkin’ Greek olive (this one happened to be stuffed with lemon – how appropriate since there’s a lot of lemon in this dish already). What you can’t see is all the flavorful sauce getting sopped up by the couscous. Oodles of flavor.
You may think I own every appliance and kitchen contraption out there. Really, I don’t. And a tagine is one of those things I don’t have. I did give one to our daughter-in-law for one of her birthdays, or Christmas – she loves cooking Moroccan food. She wanted an All-Clad tagine (that’s tah-gzheen) – she chose it because it will go on the stove, and easily goes into the oven as well. It’s metal and ceramic But one of the down sides to tagines is their bulky shape. And most of them don’t hold all that much food in them either. When Karen has made tagine for us, I’d say hers will
barely hold enough to serve 3-4 people. Under many circumstances that’s sufficient, I suppose. I’ve looked at them, but haven’t ever been bitten by the bug to buy one. Mainly because you can make tagines without one. I do love the concept of them (the steam – hence flavor – wafts around inside that conical shape and supposedly drips back down into the dish). And I love their shape – so pretty, really! If I were to buy one I think I might try the Emile Henry Flame Top 3.7 Quart Tagine, Red
Without a tagine, I used my Emile Henry pottery, a Dutch Oven – Emile Henry Flame Top Round Oven
Well, I really should talk about the chicken tagine I made, huh? The recipe came from a cooking class with Phillis Carey, although I found almost the identical recipe online – tagines are similar wherever they come from, I think. Phillis made hers with chicken breasts, but I wanted to use chicken thighs instead. Both work just fine; merely use different cooking times. First the chicken was marinated in garlic, onion, cumin, ginger, paprika, salt and pepper. If time permits you can actually refrigerate that for 24 hours. Otherwise, leave it at room temp for max 45 minutes. The chicken pieces are browned in oil, removed, sliced onion is sautéed, then you add in the flavorful stuff like chicken broth, a bay leaf, cinnamon stick and saffron. The chicken is simmered in that until done (6-8 minutes for breasts, about 20-25 for thighs).
THE QUICK PRESERVED LEMONS: on to the lemon part. If you have preserved lemon on hand (you can buy it at some markets and store it in the refrigerator), use it. I’m not overly crazy about the taste of it that way – not only is it incredibly salty, but it has a strange consistency to me. So when Phillis showed us how to make quick preserved lemon, I was all over that! I’ll be doing it that way in the future. Here’s how it’s done. First you slice up a lemon (see photo) 
and sprinkle with salt – more salt than you’d use for a serving of peas for instance, but not loaded. Turn them over and sprinkle again. Let them sit – stacked a couple of slices deep – for 30 minutes. Next, pick up the individual pieces and let them drip onto the plate (which removes juice and some of the excess salt) and set on a cutting board. Then you cut them up into small pieces. Those pictured aren’t quite cut small enough – smaller would be better. Those pieces get added to the tagine, and they kind of meld into it. They aren’t cooked at all – just heated through.
Also needing mention is the olives. Pictured at right are Moroccan green olives, available from Amazon. Phillis told us you can’t use Spanish olives – they’re the wrong taste, and generally they’re too salty. I did a quick review in my pantry and found a jar of Greek green olives stuffed with lemon. These happened to have come from Home Goods, and I bought them because my friend Yvette told me how good they were. Mine had been sitting on the pantry shelf for about a year. Maybe they got more pickled – don’t know – but OH, were they sour! My DH wouldn’t eat them – he tried one and it was the last. And he loves green olives in almost any guise. But not these! Perhaps it was the lemon filling in them. In any case, the pitted olives might need to be cut into smaller pieces. This dish has a tangy sour flavor (from the lemon), but once it’s mixed with the couscous, it mellows most of it well. You can stir in the parsley, mint and cilantro, or sprinkle on top. Serve with couscous or rice.
What I liked: well, I really liked everything about it. The olives. The quick preserved lemon pieces, the chicken, and oh, the sauce. Delish. Yes, I’d make it again. Make a big batch so you can have left overs.
What I didn’t like: it does take a bit of time to prepare, what with the lemon preserving to do, and maybe chopping olives. Chicken has to marinate too. But none of it’s hard and really not that much time.
printer-friendly PDF for chicken tagine (and includes brief instructions for the preserved lemon)
MasterCook 5+ import file – right click to save file, run MC, then File|Import
Saffron Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon and Green Olives
Recipe By: Phillis Carey, 2012
Serving Size: 8
NOTES: To do a quick preserve of a lemon, cut off both ends and slice an average lemon in 1/4 inch slices. Lay flat in a shallow ceramic dish and sprinkle liberally with salt. Allow to sit for 30 minutes. The lemons will have released lots of juice. Pick up the lemon slices only (don’t use the heavily salted juices) to a cutting board and cut them into small pieces. Discard juice.
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves — (you can also use chicken thighs, skinless, bone-in – just cook 20-30 minutes rather than under 10 as below)
MARINADE:
6 cloves garlic — minced
1/2 cup grated onion
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
TAGINE MIXTURE:
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion — sliced lengthwise
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 whole bay leaf
1 piece cinnamon stick — 2″ long
1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
1 cup green olives — (not Spanish which are too salty)
1 whole lemon — preserved in salt, diced in 1/4 inch pieces [See Notes]
2 tablespoons Italian parsley — chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro — chopped
2 tablespoons fresh mint — chopped
1. Trim chicken and pound each half to an even 1/2 inch thickness between two pieces of plastic wrap. Cut each chicken breast into 3 pieces. In a shallow casserole dish (or ziploc bag) combine garlic, grated onion, cumin, ginger, paprika, salt and pepper. Llet stand for 45 minutes, or refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Gently scrape off the marinade (you’ll add it later) that sticks to the flat parts of the chicken.
2. Heat olive oil in a large, deep saute pan. Add the chicken pieces (don’t crowd) and brown well on both sides, 6-8 minutes total. Do not cook them through, as you will be cooking the chicken further in later steps). Remove chicken to a plate. To the pan add onions and cook until tender and lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Add the chicken broth, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, all the chicken marinade stuff and saffron, and bring to a boil, scraping any browned bits from bottom of pan.
3. Return chicken to pan and cook just BELOW a simmer for 6-8 minutes (20-30 for chicken thighs), or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken to a heated platter and cover. Add olives and preserved lemon and simmer (higher heat) for 5 minutes until the liquid is reduced somewhat. Stir in parsley, mint and cilantro and taste for seasoning. Add salt or pepper as needed. Spoon sauce (including lemon bits) over chicken and serve with couscous or rice.
Per Serving: 190 Calories; 9g Fat (38.8% calories from fat); 23g Protein; 7g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 51mg Cholesterol; 483mg Sodium.
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printer-friendly PDF for quick preserved lemons
MasterCook 5+ import file – right click to save file, run MC, then File|Import
Quick Preserved Lemons
Recipe By: Phillis Carey, 2012
2 whole lemons — sliced in 1/4 inch rounds
Sea salt
1. Cut ends off each lemon and discard. Lay lemon slices on a cutting board and sprinkle thoroughly with salt. Turn lemon slices over and salt second side. Stack lemon slices two layers thick in a shallow bowl and let stand for 30 minutes, turning piles over once.
2. You can rinse these gently at this point. Or, if you’d prefer to keep what juice is still there, pick up the slices (a few at a time) and allow juices (and any salt) to drain off. With 3-4 slices at a time, cut in strips, turn and chop into 1/4 inch dice, discarding any seeds. Use in any dish calling for preserved lemons. These might keep for a day or two.
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