A short hop across the Mediterranean from Spain marks a transformation from the natural flavours of southern Europe to those of Northwest Africa, and the spice mix Ras El Hanout (while endlessly variable in composition) is a wonderful way to capture the sense of Morocco. This recipe uses chicken but it works just as well with lamb – I tend to use lamb shoulder as it can take lots of slow cooking.
Moroccan Chicken or Lamb
Ingredients
- 8 chicken thighs or about 500g lamb shoulder, cubed
- 1½ tbsp Ras el Hanout
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- Small bunch chopped coriander
- ½ preserved lemon, rinsed and chopped
- 300 – 400ml chicken or lamb stock
- 400g chopped tomatoes
- Additional ingredients that can be added as desired:
- Olives (green or black, pitted)
- Raisins
- Chopped dried apricots
- 2 tbsp honey
- Toasted almonds (for garnish)
Instructions
- First season the chicken thighs in a bowl with the Ras el Hanout and salt and pepper. Ideally, leave for at least 45 minutes for the Ras el Hanout to marinade the chicken.
- When ready to cook, heat some oil in a large casserole or a frying pan over a medium heat and thoroughly brown the chicken thighs. Once browned, remove the chicken – if using a tagine, put the chicken in the tagine and place the tagine without the lid in the oven to crispen the skin.
- Add the crushed garlic to the pan and fry briefly, then add the stock, tomatoes and preserved lemons. Also add at this point any of the additional ingredients you want to add. Put the chicken back in the casserole (or pour the sauce over the chicken in the tagine) and cover.
- Simmer in the oven until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has reduced.
- Stir in the chopped coriander and serve with couscous.