Daily Dish - Tagine

Silly me keeps forgetting to grab the recipe card I wrote out for the tagine I made on Sunday.  I'm going to attempt to replicate my recipe here, which was a hybrid of various recipes I found online.

My mom first made tagine for us during the annual parent visit over the holidays last year.  I had no idea what it was so, for those of you who are also unclear, it is a Morroccan dish named after the clay pot that it's made in.  Fortunately for us foodies, you don't actually need a fancy earthenware pot to make this dish!  I opted for the crockpot which, seeing as I ran out of counter-space due to an over-abundance of kitchen appliances, was tucked away for the summer.

Ingredients (Serves 2): 2 large chicken breasts, cut into chunks 1 red onion 4 cloves garlic 1 carrot 1 tbsp flour 4 oz dried pitted prunes 1 tbsp tomato paste 1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes 1 (14 oz) can garbanzo beans 2 tbsp honey 1/4 pint chicken stock

Spices: 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp ground ginger 1/2 tsp tumeric 1/2 tsp ground coriander 1/2 tsp ground cumin 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper salt & pepper

First, sautee the onion and garlic in some olive oil. Then add the chicken stock, and carefully mix in the flour until dissolved and not lumpy.  Next add the honey and tomato paste, again mixing until smooth.  Add the spices, with salt and pepper to taste.  Finally, add the can of tomatoes. 

Brown the chicken pieces.  I used chicken breast but you could very easily use any part of the chicken that you want. I'd actually never done chicken in a crockpot before (wings not withstanding) so forgot to lightly brown the chicken, but will definitely be adding this step next time around. 

Add the sauce, the chicken, and all the other ingredients into the crockpot.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours (or you could leave it for 7-8 hours on low).  We decided to serve with rice, although more traditionally this would be served with couscous or flat bread. I've read that you can garnish with cilantro or lemon, which I plan on doing next time around for sure!  This can also be made with beef or lamb, or substituting apricots and almonds for the prunes.  Essentially, there is no reason not to try different combinations each time you make it.

All in all a really tasty meal and even better, you can leave it unattended while you go do your thing, with the added benefit of the house smelling delicious while it cooks!

Yes, that is a paw.  Deuce photo-bombed again!