Chicken Tagine with Dates, Orange, and a Spicy Harissa Yogurt

This recipe is not an ordinary take on a chicken tagine and instead gives it a twist. Typically, a Moroccan tagine would consist of stewed meat, herbaceous spices, onions, tomatoes, olives, and lemon. I am including many of these things, but instead of olives, I am using dates, and instead of lemon, I am using orange. The orange, spices, dates and tomatoes are an unexpected but surprisingly delicious pairing. I am also making it a bit spicy and adding in some chickpeas to give the sauce just that much more depth.

Do you need a tagine to make this?

This recipe is named for the cone shaped, wide bottomed tagine, or pot, it is typically cooked in. The shape creates a unique, moist environment. As steam rises in the cone, it condenses and trickles back into the cooking pot to prevent any meats from becoming dried out during the cooking process. I don’t have a tagine and I am guessing you don’t either, so I cracked the lid on my stock pot to help mimic the job for this recipe and I would say it worked pretty well.

I am also making this chicken tagine during Ramadan in which Muslims will fast during daylight hours and break the fast at sunset with dates. Because of this, dates are plentiful right now which is why I decided to use them. The tradition of breaking the fast with dates goes back to Prophet Mohammed himself who is said to have eaten dates to signify the end of fasting and the beginning of Iftar, or the nightly meal during Ramadan.

This chicken tagine recipe would be fit for an Iftar meal itself! It serves a crowd, but does not require constant attention, so it would be great for any occasion to celebrate. It serves well with rice and/or your favorite bread to sop up that decadent sauce.

Serves 6

Suggested Wine Pairing:

Shiraz would be perfect to balance out the flavors of this chicken tagine.

Ingredients:

6 bone in chicken thighs, or you could use a whole fryer chicken cut up

1 onion sliced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 Thai red chili, minced (optional)

Zest of one medium orange

2 tablespoons oil

1 large pinch of saffron, bloomed in warm water

1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon

3/4 cup dates, diced

Juice of one orange

1 14 oz can diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon of Bharat or Syrian pepper. You could also use allspice instead

1 14 oz can of chickpeas

For the Harissa Yogurt:

2 tablespoons harissa

1/2 cup plain yogurt

To Serve:

Chopped parsley, slivered almonds, and long grain rice or bread.

Instructions:

1. Salt and pepper chicken on each side and sear skin side down in oil over medium high heat. Cook for 5 minutes each side and remove from the pot.

1. Sauté onions for 5 minutes or until soft. Add garlic, chilis, and orange zest and cook for another minute prior to adding the Syrian pepper or allspice and stir to combine.
2. Add saffron in blooming liquid, cinnamon, tomatoes, orange juice, dates, and chickpeas and bring to a simmer.

1. Add the seared chicken and cover the pot with the lid cracked. Cook for 35-40 minutes and try not to remove the lid to mimic the tagine.
2. Mix the harissa with yogurt to combine.
3. Serve this like a stew and place a portion of rice at the bottom of the bowl, cover with sauce and a piece of chicken and then garnish with parsley and slivered almonds.