Chicken Tagine
 
Chicken Tagine
 
SIMMER RECIPE

Chicken Tagine

2hrs 0mins
medium
Servings: 4

A warmly spiced and fragrant stew with a thick sauce rounded off with sweetness from dried prunes and apricots and saltiness from olives.

Written by Bea Kabiri Recipe development with a keen interest in ancient foods

Ingredients

  • 2 tsp ghee (or other cooking fat)
  • 8 organic skin-on chicken thighs
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 green cardamom pods
  • 2 onions, diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 red chilli, sliced
  • 1.5 tsp coarse black pepper
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp sweet paprika
  • 1/4 tsp allspice
  • 1/4 tsp turmeric
  • 1/8 tsp cloves
  • 1 generous grating of nutmeg
  • 400g tin plum tomatoes
  • 3 fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 5 prunes
  • 3 dried apricots
  • 4 black olives
  • 1 butternut squash, cubed
  • 1 handful tarragon and parsley, freshly chopped
  • 324g (1 pouch) Borough Broth Organic Chicken Bone Broth
Free-Range Organic Chicken Bone Broth
£6.15
£6.15

Instructions

  1. Heat up the ghee in a large pot and brown the chicken thighs really well. Remove thighs from the pot and set aside.
  2. Add more fat to the pan if there isn't much remaining from the chicken. Add the cinnamon stick, bay leaves and cardamom to the fat. Once they're sizzling, add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are nicely caramelised.
  3. Add the garlic and stir fry until it loses its raw aroma.
  4. Add in all of the ground spices and stir fry, just to toast them.
  5. Add in all the ingredients from plum tomatoes down to the butternut squash. Give the pot a good stir, bring to a boil, then turn the heat down.
  6. Place chicken thighs, along with any delicious juices it's released, back into the pot. Put the lid on and simmer gently until the chicken is soft, the fruit has melted into the sauce and all the flavours have happily melded together.
  7. Season with salt and pepper. Add a squeeze of lemon juice or a sprinkle of sumac for acidity, if needed.
  8. Stir through your fresh herbs, and serve with something to soak up the unctuous sauce: hunks of bread and butter, quinoa, rice, couscous, polenta, or even cauliflower rice.