Before I jump into this recipe, I wanted to mention that preserved lemons are a central ingredient in this dish. If you read my last post about preserved lemons, you will understand why I chose to post a recipe for preserved lemons first. Because preserved lemons are quintessential to Moroccan cuisine. Without preserved lemons, Authentic Chicken Tagine would not be, well…Authentic. I strongly encourage you to either make your own, order them from Amazon.com or get them from a Middle Eastern market. Now back to the post.

What is Tagine?

In a general sense, tagine is a stew or a casserole-style dish that is cooked in a specially shaped pot also called a Tagine. It originated from the Berbers, the native, nomadic peoples of the deserts of North Africa whose culture greatly influenced the development of Moroccan culture as a whole. Some people believe it’s more accurate to refer to tagine cooking as a style of cooking, rather than as a specific type of dish – this makes sense considering the sheer variety of different stews that can be made in a tagine pot!

Spices Make the Dish

One common trait of nearly all tagine dishes is the liberal use of spices and aromatics. The most popular tagines in Morocco tend to feature both sweet and savory flavors – you’ll have a chicken tagine with lemons and olives or lamb tagine with prunes. Spices used include saffron, ginger, coriander, cinnamon, paprika, turmeric, and many others. While Tagines commonly feature meats and poultry, these dishes can be completely vegetarian as well!

The Tagine Pot

One unique aspect of tagine cooking is the use of the tagine pot, which is unlike anything you may have seen before in the kitchen. It is flat on the bottom but conical on top. This shape helps to enhance the amazing flavors in a tagine dish – the conical top captures all of the flavors during cooking, condenses them, and then drips back down into the food, continually basting it. For the Berbers, who lived in the desert where water was hard to come by, this shape allowed them to conserve water during cooking  – it also saved space during their nomadic wandering since the cooking vessel was also used to serve the meal!

Tagines are best for long, slow cooking of tough cuts of meat, though vegetarian stews work well too.

But you don’t need a tagine to make this recipe. Use a Dutch oven or another lidded pot instead, as long as the lid fits tightly. If you choose to get a tagine, the use of a diffuser between the tagine and the heat source is essential. A diffuser is a flat metal paddle that sits between the burner and the tagine, and as the name says, it diffuses the heat so the ceramic doesn’t crack and break.

Begin by first removing the fat from the chicken, then wash it and set it aside. Then make the marinade and mix it all together. Rub the chicken with the marinade ensuring you spread it evenly.

And now, without further ado, it’s time to make our Authentic Chicken Tagine with Olives and Preserved Lemons. Happy cooking!

Cook’s note: Tagines are usually served accompanied by couscous which I’m planning to post next so stay tuned for the recipe!

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Chicken Tagine

Course Main Course

Cuisine Moroccan

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 4 chicken drumsticks and 4 chicken thighs
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 preserved lemon *can make yourself* or purchase online pulp separated from peel
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley plus an extra 1 tsp for garnishing
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro plus an extra 1 tsp for garnishing
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
• 2 teaspoons fresh minced ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 pinch saffron threads
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 small red onions finely sliced or 1 large one
• 3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
• half cup green olives
• 1 teaspoon ghee or butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• fresh ground pepper
• Optional Harissa paste for serving on the side

Instructions

• Begin by first removing the fat off the chicken then wash it and set aside.
• Now, let's make the marinate. In a large bowl add the garlic, the pulp of the preserved lemon, parsley, cilantro, 2 TSPS lemon juice, paprika, ginger, cumin, turmeric, coriander, saffron threads. Mix it altogether. Rub the chicken with marinate making sure you massage the chicken and spread the marinade all over it evenly.
• Turn on the fire on low and heat up the tagine pot, making sure to place a heat diffuser underneath, otherwise the clay pot will crack, or use a dutch oven or a large heavy skillet. Heat up the oil and start to cook the onions on a medium fire until they are soft and translucent, about 6 minutes. Arrange the chicken on top of the onions and let it cook for about 3 minutes. Turn once. Cook for another 3 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring it to a boil. Cover the pot
• Cover the tagine pot and let it cook for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over and cook for another 20 minutes. Add the chopped preserved lemon peel and the olives. Stir it. Cook for another 10 minutes. Sprinkle some cilantro and parsley on it and serve it with couscous or bread.
• Do not add salt until the end as the chicken and the preserved lemon is already salty.

The post Authentic Chicken Tagine with Olives and Preserved Lemons appeared first on My Global Cuisine.

One might think, it’s just preserved lemons. Why all the fuss? Isn’t that easy to make? True. But, this is not about the level of difficulty, it’s about all the little questions that arise when making preserved lemons. When I took a cooking class in Marrakech, the chef just showed me how to slice the lemons, add salt to them, and place them inside a jar. I thought that was it. So simple. I didn’t think for a minute about all the hows and whys afterwards, after all, I was on vacation and I couldn’t wait to hit the public markets.

Once I returned from my trip, I decided to work on my preserved lemons and many questions arose. For instance, do I have to sterilize the bottle jars first, do I have to …….?

Since I couldn’t get in touch with the chef who taught the class, I had to look for answers online, and pretty much all the recipes I looked at had NO ANSWERS to my questions, so I had to figure them out on my own. The solution was to purchase several bags of lemons, preserve them in different ways, and after 4 weeks, see which ones made it. After four weeks, I discovered that some of the lemon jars turned out beautifully. Others made it, but the lemons turned dark brown in color, and a couple of the jars had mildew on top. Yikes! Since I had stickers placed on each jar, I was able to determine why this occurred. As it turns out, some of the jars were not filled to the top with lemon juice. The ones completely immersed in liquid were fine.

I would have to say this was a fun yet very stressful experience. Waiting four weeks to find out which ones made it and which ones failed was no fun. The good news is that I answered all my questions, and going forward, making preserved lemons will be a breeze, so here we go:

1- THE JARS: Use wide-mouthed 1 pint (16 OZ) jars with a two-piece screw-on lid to preserve 3 lemons, or a 1-quart canning jar to preserve 6-8 lemons.

2- You don’t have to sterilize the jar in boiling water. Salt is a very powerful preservative and has been used to preserve foods for centuries. In Morocco, it’s not customary to sterilize the jars because the salt content is so high, however, I did place mine with the two-piece screw lids inside of a pot of boiling water for a minute because they came home dusty from the hardware store, but if it makes you the least bit worried, then you can boil the jars for 5 minutes to sterilize them, or just run through the hottest wash-and-dry cycle of your dishwater right before you start. Either way, make sure it’s bone dry!

3- Pack them inside the jar as tightly leaving as little air inside the jar as possible. Ensure the lemons are completely covered by the juice, otherwise, they will be floating and the top lemons will not immerse completely in the juice.

4- Pour the juice into the jar until it is filled to the brim and all lemons are completely submerged. This will ensure no mildew forms on top. WARNING! If a piece of lemon is sticking up out of the solution, mold will form!

5- Use sea salt (Iodine will turn lemons brown). I used kosher salt because it has a clean, iodine-free flavor. Avoid table salt as it contains preservatives that prevent it from properly protecting against mold.

6- The Lemons: You will want to use organic, pesticide-free lemons. Get twice as many as lemons as you’re going to preserve, because you’ll use half of them for the juice. A tip I learned from Moroccan chef Mourad Lahlou, executive chef/owner of the Mourad restaurant in San Francisco and also a book Author is before you start juicing, you might want to do what he does at his restaurant: use a zester to strip off the zest from the lemons you are juicing, NOT THE ONES YOU’RE PRESERVING. Spread the zest on a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and put it in the freezer. Once it’s frozen, transfer it to a resealable freezer bag and you’ll have a supply of lemon zest ready to use in cooking or baking.

7- Use both conventional lemons and Meyer lemons if you find them and see which one you prefer. I made two batches. I liked the Meyer lemons batch much more. Conventional lemons, (which are generally either Eureka or Lisbon lemons are too tart.). Meyer lemons taste more lemony and are significantly less tart, less acidic, and sweet enough to be added to many dishes, including ice cream. In Morocco, Doqq and Boussera lemons were used. I found that Meyer lemons are most similar to them.

8- Put the jars in a dark spot, like a cupboard or pantry, not in the refrigerator. For one week, turn and shake the jar once a day to redistribute the salt that has settled to the bottom. Add more lemon juice if you notice that the lemons are no longer submerged. I marked the date on the calendar for when they would be ready so I wouldn’t forget. Then, lemons take 1 month to preserve. In the meantime, don’t be concerned if there is a little bubbling around the edge of the jar. That is a normal part of the fermentation process. Your lemons may also turn a little brown, which is also normal. That’s why sea salt is recommended.

9- Storing: In his book, Mourad Lahlou said: Once you’ve opened your jar of preserved lemons, top off the liquid with an 1/8-inch-thick layer of olive oil. You can store the jar at room temperature for several more months, though the lemons will continue to soften. I think they’re at their peak of creaminess after 3 to 4 months. To keep them from softening further, Chef Mourad recommended draining any that are still left after 4 months (save the brine to add sparingly to dressings and sauces) and removing the pulp and pith. Then store the rinds in a small glass jar, completely covered with extra virgin olive oil, for up to a year in the refrigerator. This has the added advantage of giving you a supply of preserved lemon rind that’s always at the ready. If at any point a white film forms on the surface of the liquid, the whole lemons, or the rinds, don’t worry. Just rinse it off before using the lemons.

10- The chef who taught me this class in Morocco said that she had kept preserved lemons inside her cupboard for as long as 3 years without any problem. They got a little discolored, but still tasted amazing. It must be the salt, as it’s a very powerful preservative.

11- Always use utensils to remove needed preserved lemons from the jar, never your hands.

12- If you find the lemon peel too salty, you could soak the preserved lemon in cold water to reduce the salt.

13- Some white crystals will form on the top of the lemons in the jar, which is normal, so do not discard the lemons.

Making Preserved Lemons: First, gather your supplies and ingredients. You will need 1 pint (16 OZ) jar, three lemons per pint jar, or you can use a 1-quart canning jar and double the recipe.

You will want to buy organic and pesticide-free lemons. You will also need kosher salt because it has a clean iodine free flavor. Eureka or Lisbon lemons. I bought a bag of Meyer lemons at Trader Joe’s and they worked beautifully. If you can’t find Meyer lemons, Eureka or Lisbon lemons could be used.

Scrub the lemons you plan to preserve under cold running water, then pat dry. Stand the lemon stem side down and cut into the lemon as if you were going to half it, but stop at 1/2 inch above the bottom. Now make a perpendicular cut, also stopping halfway above the stem.

Next, hold the lemon over a cutting board packing as much salt as possible into the cuts of the lemon, about a tablespoon.

Next, place the lemon in the jar, scored side up, so the salt does not spill out. Pack as many as you can into the jar, pushing down hard so they’re squeezed in tightly.

Put the lid on the jar, and leave it out overnight. The next day, use a clean spoon to pack them tighter and add as many as you can to fill the jar. Juice the remaining lemons, and add the juice to the jar. When the lemons are submerged, tighten the lid and place them in a cool, dark spot to preserve. Don’t tighten the lid too much, as this may cause it to buckle. I had to add a little juice after the first week to make sure the lemons stayed submerged. I checked on my lemons every few days, turning the jar upside down to redistribute the juices and salt through the jar.

HOW TO USE PRESERVED LEMONS: You can add preserved lemons to Couscous: Toss some finely minced preserved lemon rind and parsley into couscous just before serving. Preserved lemons stuffed into the interior of a roasted chicken infuses great flavor. Vinaigrette: Add the brining liquid sparingly to vinaigrette and salad dressings. Use small amounts of the brining liquid to flavor and season chicken and fish, as it really adds to the flavor. Desserts: Add minced preserved lemon rind in small amounts to ice creams or rice pudding. I have salt and juice syrup left, I have been using a small amount of this to flavor and season chicken and fish, it really adds to the flavor.

Conclusion. As Chef Mourad Lahlou said “Every culture has their own unique contribution to the culinary world. According to him, preserved lemons are Morocco’s greatest culinary contribution to the world.”

After being in Morocco and tasting some of their delicious authentic dishes, I would have to agree with him 1000%!

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Preserved Lemons

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 minute minute

Total Time 16 minutes minutes

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 6 Meyer lemons
• 6 tablespoons coarse sea salt or kosher salt
• juice of 6 lemons

Instructions

• Before starting, find a jar large enough to accommodate all of the lemons snugly — I used a 2-quart jar for my 8 lemons. To sterilize it, fill it with boiling water, leave for a minute, and then empty it. Allow it to dry out naturally without wiping it so it remains sterilized.
• Wash the lemons and cut a deep cross all the way from the top to within ¾ inch from the base. Put a tablespoon of salt in the bottom of a 16 OZ pint-sized jar. Stuff each lemon with about 1 tablespoon of the salt (if lemons are small, use 2 teaspoons) and place in the jar. Push the lemons in tightly so they are squeezed together snugly. Put half tablespoon of salt over the top of the lemon. Repeat the process by putting a tablespoon of salt inside the second lemon, and then push the second lemon in tightly pushing them down hard so they're squeezed in tightly. Seal the jar and leave in a cool spot for at least a week.
• After the initial period, remove the lid and press the lemons as hard as you can to squeeze out as much of the juice as possible. Add the lemon juice, and cover and seal the jar, transfer to the fridge, and leave for at least 4 weeks. The longer you leave them, the better the flavor

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How much lower, you ask? Well a typical pound cake contains 1lb of butter. That equates to 3240 calories, and 366 grams of fat (236 grams saturated fat). This recipe uses 1 cup of yogurt, 160 calories with 9 grams of fat and 1/2 cup of vegetable oil with 964 calories and 109 grams of fat (14 grams saturated fat). So that about 65% less calories and 67% less fat.

Giving up the bad stuff, in this case, does NOT equate to less taste or inferior texture. One bite will convince you I am right and make you believe that this recipe is a keeper. It’s bursting with a wonderful citrus flavor, and the yogurt and oil make it very moist. I came across this recipe when it was first published in Bon Appetit magazine in February 2005. I was looking to grow as a home cook then, so I subscribed to the magazine before venturing out to culinary schools in N.Y.C. and abroad.  I have to say  that I got some great recipes from Bon Appetit, and if you are a new cook, I wholeheartedly recommend a subscription. I have been making this French Yogurt Cake with Marmalade Glaze since it was first published. It  looks  and tastes like it is difficult to make, but it’s quite the opposite, super easy and effortless.  It’s the perfect cake to serve when company arrives, or at dinner parties because it can be made ahead of time, and it keeps well.

Serve this French Yogurt Cake with Marmalade Glaze with some whipped cream and berries on the side, have it for breakfast, or with your afternoon tea. Make one and keep it in the cake dish for when guests unexpectedly stop by. It’s really great at any occasion.

Bon Appetit!

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French Yogurt Cake With Marmalade Glaze

Bon Appetit original recipe

Course Dessert

Cuisine French

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 6 -8 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of salt
• 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup lemon orange, or grapefruit marmalade (for glaze)
• 1 teaspoon of water

Instructions

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
• Generously butter an 8 1/2x4 1/2x2 1/2-inch metal loaf pan.
• Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl.
• Combine yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon peel, and vanilla in a large bowl and whisk until well blended.
• Gradually whisk in the dry ingredients. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the oil. Transfer batter to a prepared pan.
• Place the pan on a baking sheet on the middle rack and bake until cake begins to pull away from the sides and a tester inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 50 minutes.
• Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes before unmolding. Cut around the sides of the pan to loosen cake, and then turn the cake out onto the rack.Turn the cake upright on the rack and cool completely.
• Stir marmalade and 1 teaspoon of water together in a small saucepan over medium heat until the marmalade melts. Brush the hot mixture over the top of the cake. Let the glaze cool and set.
• Cut the cake crosswise into slices. Serve it on it's own or with whipped cream and fresh berries.
• (Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap and store at room temperature.)

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