Moroccan Chicken Tagine With Caramelized Pears Recipes

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Combine the spices in a small bowl and set aside. Zest the lemon. Combine 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest with 1 minced garlic clove; set aside.
• Season both sides of chicken pieces with 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or pan over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown the chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, flip the chicken pieces over and brown the other side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until they have browned at the edges but still retain their shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add a few tablespoons of water now and then if the pan gets too dark). Add the remaining minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the spices and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the broth, honey, remaining lemon zest, and ¼ teaspoon salt, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Add the chicken (with any accumulated juices) back in, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the carrots, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender-crisp, about 10 minutes more.
• Stir in the olives, reserved lemon zest-garlic mixture, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice; taste the sauce and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired. Serve with couscous.
• Note: Don't fret too much over trimming the chicken thighs. The skin gets removed midway through the cooking process and most of the fat will cook off and get drained. I usually just take kitchen shears and quickly snip off any excess skin or fat. Cracked green olives are olives that have been 'cracked' or split open before curing, allowing the brine or marinade to penetrate. You can find them in your supermarket's olive bar, or substitute any green olive that you like.
• Make-Ahead: After you have completed the step of cooking the carrots, the dish can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm on the stove until the chicken is heated through, then proceed to the step where the olives and remaining ingredients are added.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE WITH CARAMELIZED PEARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Heat 2 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and cook onions until softened and browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer onions into a tagine. Layer chicken pieces on top of onions.
• Combine turmeric, cumin, ground coriander, and salt in a small bowl; mix well with remaining 5 tablespoons olive oil. Spread spice mixture onto the chicken pieces. Add cinnamon pieces, bay leaves, ginger, and cilantro. Pour in 1/2 cup of water and cover tagine with a lid.
• Bake in the preheated oven until chicken is no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, about 50 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
• Melt butter in a skillet over low heat while chicken is cooking. Add sliced pears and honey and cook, while stirring, until honey has caramelized.
• Remove tagine from the oven and stir in caramelized pears. Return to the oven and cook for an additional 10 minutes.

MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAJINE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix the garlic, cumin, ginger, paprika, salt and pepper, 1/2 cup grated onion, and the oil.
• Rinse the preserved lemons, and remove the pulp. RESERVE the lemon peel for later use.
• Add the lemon pulp to the mixing bowl. Add the chicken. Mix everything together and place in a large plastic bag to marinate overnight in the refrigerator. (Twenty-four hours really gives the chicken the best flavor.)
• In a large Dutch oven or casserole, place the chicken and marinade; add the stems of the parsley and cilantro, the rest of the grated onion, the powdered saffron and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, turn down to a simmer and cook, partially covered, for 30 minutes.
• Remove the cover, stir the chicken and continue to simmer for another 15 minutes or until the chicken is tender.
• Remove the chicken to a serving dish and cover with foil to keep warm. Keep sauce on stove and begin to reduce.
• Slice the preserved lemon peel into thin slices and add to the sauce along with the olives, parsley and cilantro. Reduce until the sauce is just a little thick. This shouldn't take more than 5 minutes at most.
• Uncover the chicken and remove the skin from the chicken. (It doesn't look pretty and who needs the extra fat.) Pour sauce over chicken and serve.

CHICKEN TAGINE WITH POTATOES AND PEAS (MOROCCO -- NORTH AFRICA)

Steps:

• In a large flameproof casserole, combine chicken, onions, garlic, oil, saffron, cumin, ginger pepper, paprika & salt, then cover with water, about 2 cups. Over medium-high heat, bring to a boil & cook, covered, for 30 minutes.
• Add parsley, cilantro & potatoes, then cook, covered, another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are nearly done.
• Add peas, lower the heat & simmer for 5 minutes more.
• If sauce is still runny, uncover the pan & boil hard until thickened, then taste & adjust seasoning, if necessary, before transferring to a preheated serving dish ~ Serve very hot with a good bread!

CHICKEN WITH CARAMELIZED PEARS

Steps:

• Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. In a large skillet, brown chicken in butter; remove and keep warm. In the same skillet, saute onion until tender. Add pears and brown sugar; cook 3 minutes longer. Stir in vinaigrette and thyme., Return chicken to skillet. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 4-6 minutes or until chicken juices run clear. Meanwhile, cook rice according to package directions. Serve with chicken.

CLASSIC MOROCCAN CHICKEN TAGINE

Steps:

• Finely dice the onions and sauté in a large pot with the spice mix, using the olive oil.
• When the onions and spice mix starts to give off a fragrant smell, add in the diced chicken. Fry this off for 2 minutes.
• Add the cans tomato, stock, 1 cup of water, chickpeas and the juice of half a lemon.
• Season with salt and pepper and let this simmer for 15 minutes. If it gets to thick too quickly add in more water.