Chicken tagine

Name: Chicken tagine
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Moroccan
Ingredients: 1kg free-range chicken thighs on the bone, skin removed; ½ tsp salt; 2 tsp smoked paprika; 4 tbsp olive oil; 2 large onions, finely diced; 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped; 2 green capsicum, roughly diced; ½ tsp white pepper; 30g fresh ginger, finely diced; 1 tbsp sweet paprika; 1 tbsp honey; 3 green chillies, halved, de-seeded and chopped into 3cm pieces; 30g currants; 400ml chicken or vegetable stock; 1 lemon, juiced

Frank Camorra

January 19, 2015

Moroccan classic: Chicken tagine is a simple dish with vibrant flavours.Marcel Aucar

Time:30 mins - 1 hourServes:4

Chicken tagine is such a classic dish, it is very perilous to mess with it. I would suggest if you want to add your own personal touch, serve it with different grains. You could steam couscous as usual then add caramelised onion and Turkish black chilli to give it a kick, or try it with the larger pearl couscous, or freekah.

Ingredients

1kg free-range chicken thighs on the bone, skin removed
½ tsp salt
2 tsp smoked paprika
4 tbsp olive oil
2 large onions, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 green capsicum, roughly diced
½ tsp white pepper
30g fresh ginger, finely diced
1 tbsp sweet paprika
1 tbsp honey
3 green chillies, halved, de-seeded and chopped into 3cm pieces
30g currants
400ml chicken or vegetable stock
1 lemon, juiced

Method

Mix the chicken pieces with the salt, paprika and half the olive oil then marinate in the fridge while you make the sauce.
Heat the remaining olive oil in a deep pan and fry the onions, garlic and capsicum for 10 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Add the pepper, ginger, paprika and honey and stir well. Add the green chillies and currants and pour over the stock. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes. Turn it off while you brown the chicken.
Heat a large, heavy-based pan over a medium heat, add the chicken pieces and fry slowly until they are golden all over. Remove the chicken from the pan, add to the sauce and cook for about 10 minutes or until tender. Stir in the lemon juice and season with extra salt if necessary.
Place in a serving dish and serve with steamed couscous.
Tip
Instead of chicken, try fish, or rabbit if you want to be more adventurous.