Moroccan Dish - Tagine

I wanted to share a Moroccan dish that has become a favorite in our home, ever since a friend who lives there taught me how to make it. Jeff, Aaron and I were actually able to travel to Morocco in October and tried the real thing a few times while there. It is delicious!!

The dish is called Tagine, mainly because of the clay dish that it is cooked in. Here is a picture of what it looks like....



But, for those of us with no clay "tagine" dish, a big stock pot will work just fine. So...here is the recipe:

You will need: (You kind of have to eyeball these amounts based on how many people will be eating)
Red onions (White or yellow ones will work, too)
Potatoes
Carrots
Chicken breast (or any cut of chicken you may have in your fridge!)
Tomatoes
Cilantro

You will also need to mix the following spices together in a separate bowl or cup:
1 cup olive oil
1 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. cummin
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
salt
pepper
garlic salt

Ok, so you start off by cutting the onions into thin slices and placing them at the bottom of your stock pot like so...



Next you peel and slice the potatoes into thin slices and layer them over the onions in the pot...



You then do the same with the carrots. Peel and slice and place over the potatoes...



Next you place your chicken breasts over the carrots and pour the spice mixture over the entire thing. Then add some water to the pot until it's about a 3rd of the way up. Too much water will make this dish more like a soup, so don't overdo it. You want this to be more like a stew. Keep in mind that as it cooks, it will produce it's own juice. I just pour until I begin to see some of the liquid on the sides of the pot. You can add some fresh cilantro at this point, too.

After this you put the lid on the pot and cook on medium heat till the meat is white. You then check the sauce for flavor and add more spices accordingly. At this point I usually just mix the same amount of spices I poured in the first time, with less oil, and pour it over the chicken. You then put the lid back on the pot and continue to cook on medium to low heat until all the vegetables are cooked. I usually let it cook for anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes. The slower the better; like stew!! I have cooked it fast in a pinch and the onions burnt, which by the way, is ok with this dish. My friend told me that it's actually ok if they burn some and that's why they put the onions on the bottom! When it's about done, slice some tomatoes and chop up some cilantro and place them over the chicken. Let this cook only long enough for the tomatoes to get somewhat soft.




Then it's time to dig in! Oh, and serve it with bread!


Seem a bit tedious? Well, the first time around it may be, but it is soooo worth it. Seriously...do try! If any of you daring cooks out there try it, let me know how it turns out and what you think!