Chicken and preserved lemon tagine

Name: Chicken and preserved lemon tagine
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: Moroccan recipes
Ingredients: Pinch of saffron; 600ml chicken stock, hot; 2 tbsp olive oil; 1.7kg organic chicken, jointed or 1.5kg chicken pieces (leg, thigh and breast); 1 large onion, chopped; 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped; 1 tsp ground ginger; ½ tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed; 1 cinnamon stick, snapped in half; 5 small preserved lemons, quartered (we used Belazu); 200g green olives; Small handful fresh flatleaf parsley or coriander, chopped

Published: 30 Jun 08
Updated: 24 Oct 24

Test kitchen approved

This is one of the best known and loved tagines. Accompany with houmous, flatbread and a few mezze dishes to make it an affordable dinner party or Sunday lunch spread.

Looking for something else? How about our chicken tagine with almonds and apricots?

Serves 6
Ready in 1 hour 20 min

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Ingredients

Pinch of saffron
600ml chicken stock, hot
2 tbsp olive oil
1.7kg organic chicken, jointed or 1.5kg chicken pieces (leg, thigh and breast)
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp ground ginger
½ tsp coriander seeds, lightly crushed
1 cinnamon stick, snapped in half
5 small preserved lemons, quartered (we used Belazu)
200g green olives
Small handful fresh flatleaf parsley or coriander, chopped

Method

Soak the saffron in a jug containing the hot stock for a few minutes. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large deep-sided frying pan or casserole over a high heat and brown the chicken pieces for 2-3 minutes. You may need to do this in batches so you don’t overcrowd the pan and steam the chicken. Remove the chicken to a plate and add the onion to the pan. Reduce the heat and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and spices to the pan and cook, stirring, for a further minute. If you’re using a tagine, transfer the onion to the base and add the saffron-infused stock and the browned chicken pieces (if using a casserole, leave the onion in the pan, then add the chicken and stock). Bring to the boil and simmer over a gentle heat, covered, for 40-50 minutes, until the chicken is tender.
Add the lemons and olives and simmer for a further 15 minutes. Season to taste, scatter with the fresh herbs and serve with couscous.

Recipe from July 2008 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 344kcals
Fat: 19.4g (4.4g saturated)
Protein: 36.9g
Carbohydrates: 4.4g (2.8g sugar)
Salt: 1.7g

delicious. tips

You can easily cook the tagine in a large casserole in the oven if you prefer. Preheat to 150°C/fan130°C/gas 2 and cook, covered, for 1 hour. Add the lemon and olives and return to the oven for a further 15 minutes before scattering with parsley and coriander.

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Chicken and preserved lemon tagine

Ingredients

Method

Nutrition

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Chicken and preserved lemon tagine

Ingredients

Method

Nutrition

delicious. tips

Or, how about...?

Leftover chicken tagine

North African chicken with honey and saffron

Spiced chicken with quinoa and lemon zest

Donal Skehan’s ultimate chicken tagine

Duck and prune tagine

More to discover