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| Spicy Chicken Tajine w/ Apricots & Walnuts |
You know that harissa I had you make way back when on Tuesday? Well, it'll come in handy if my take on a chicken tajine happens to tickle your fancy.
Like harissa, a tajine (sometimes spelled tagine) is a culinary delight originating in North Africa. Named after the earthenware vessel in which it is slowly simmered, the ingredients used in these series of sweet and sour stews can vary considerably, although a meat or fish, fruit and nut combination is most common.
Historically a Berber dish, tajines were an ingenious and important device to these nomadic tribesmen. The design of an authentic tajine is made of two parts: a flat bottom and a domed or curved lid. While the ingredients stew in the flat bottom piece, the curved top creates condensation, returning the liquid to the bottom. Why is that important? Well, these peoples' lives consisted of traveling through barren deserts where water wasn't exactly abundant. Tajines helped the Berbers make tough pieces of meat tender with very little liquid. In my take on a chicken tajine I've added apricots and walnuts to balance the spicy sourness of my homemade harissa. Once again, this post isn't so much a rigid recipe, but an invitation to explore the different tastes and textures tajines offer. So maybe you don't have dried apricots available? Try raisins or prunes. You don't like walnuts? Almonds are pretty standard in tajines. Maybe you've got some lamb stew meat-- throw that in instead of chicken! Now, make this stew-- but more importantly, make this stew work for you.
Ingredients:
~2 lb chicken thighs & drumsticks
4 big shallots, sliced (10 oz/282 g)
1 bell pepper, diced*
1 Roma tomato, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 large thumb-size piece ginger, minced
~1/4 t ground turmeric
1 stick of cinnamon, about 3 inches long
4-6 T homemade harissa, depending on how spicy you like it
1 lemon, juiced
10 fl oz chicken stock (300 ml)
1/2 - 2/3 C dried apricots, quartered (4 1/3 oz/120 g)
1/2 C walnuts, roughly chopped
handful of parsley, chopped (~1/4C)
handful of cilantro, chopped (~1/4 C)
salt and pepper to taste
*I recommend any color, but I prefer the milder yellow, red, or orange in my tajine.
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4 servings
(w/out couscous)
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Calories
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Protein
(g)
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Carbs
(g)
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Fat
(g)
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Sodium
(mg)
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Sugar
(g)
|
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Total:
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1,984
|
97
|
135
|
122
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1,006
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67
|
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Per Serving:
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496
|
24
|
34
|
31
|
252
|
17
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1. Brown your chicken on both sides in a little bit of oil over medium high heat golden brown and remove from pot.
2. Add shallots, half of your diced bell pepper, tomato, and ginger in the pot and stir until shallots begin to get slightly translucent (about 3 minutes).
3. Add a pinch of salt, turmeric, cinnamon stick, and garlic to pot and stir for about another 2 minutes or until garlic very fragrant and spices slightly toasted.
4. Add harissa and stir for about two minutes. 4 tablespoons should not be overwhelming. I use 6 tablespoons. Use your own tastes and common sense as a guide.
5. Add the juice of one lemon and stir. Then turn heat to high and add in chicken stock. Make sure to scrape any pieces off the bottom while the pan deglazes.
6. Add in apricots and chicken. Let the liquid come to a boil and then reduce heat to low or simmer to achieve a simmer. Cover the pot almost completely and flip pieces and stir after 30 minutes. After another 30 minutes, check to see if chicken is fork tender i.e. stick a fork in it. If it pierces easily, then your chicken should be done. If it's not tender after an hour, let it go, checking in half hour intervals.*
7. Remove chicken pieces and put under broiler if crispy skin is desired. Add in chopped parsley, cilantro, and walnuts. Give them a good stir. Check the sauce for seasoning**. If the sauce is too thin still, you can allow it to reduce while the pot is uncovered and you broil the chicken. If the sauce is just right, you can turn off the heat and cover the pot while you get the rest of your dinner ready.
8. Serve on a bed of couscous and garnish with the rest of your bell pepper and chopped parsley.
* If you have the time, you can let it cook longer so it's almost falling off of the bone. You can't really overcook dark meat like this. Another thing you can do after bringing to a boil and reducing to a simmer is cover the pot almost completely and put it in a preheated 350° F oven for an hour for a more hands-off approach.
** When tasting the sauce, make sure you get a little piece of apricot and hopefully some walnuts. The sauce alone may be a little to sour or spicy, but the apricots and walnuts give the dish balance.
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