Tagine! It's a way of life in Morocco and you're going to love it! Chicken Tagine with Olives is the way to my heart!
Let's start with the basics. Tagine, is a dish that originated in Northern Africa and has since made its way across Europe and beyond. It's particularly popular for dinner parties because it feeds a crowd and it's incredibly flavorful. At it's core, a tagine is large chunks of stewed meat, tons of spices, preserved lemons and fresh herbs on top. It's cooked in a vessel that's also called a tagine. It's basically an earthenware dish with a tight fitting, cone-shaped lid. During cooking, that lid catches the rising vapor and condensation and allows it to drip back over the ingredients making them extra juicy and flavorful.
Yours truly was NOT able to haul an authentic tagine back from Morocco, hello, carry on only for life. So I did it with the next best thing, a skillet and a lid. A tagine is on my list of things to purchase one day! Until then... I gave it my Gaby spin and it's delicious! Make it - you won't be disappointed!
For the entire Moroccan dinner party spread - here's the full menu for you!
Chicken Tagine with Olives
Ingredients
For the Chicken
- 8 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon saffron threads crushed
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6-8 bone in skin on chicken thighs
For the Tagine
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 yellow onions, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 16 green castelvetrano olives, pitted and smashed
- 1 lemon, peeled into thick slices (using a vegetable peeler to peel the lemon peel into thick 1 inch strips)
- 1 cup chicken stock
- Juice of ½ lemon
- 1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
Instructions
- Mix garlic, saffron, ginger, paprika, cumin and turmeric together with ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper. Rub the chicken with mixture, cover, and refrigerate to marinate for 3 to 4 hours.
- Heat oil in heavy skillet. Add chicken, and brown on all sides. Remove to plate and set aside. Add onions to skillet, and cook over medium-low heat about 15 minutes, until they begin to caramelize. Add the ground cinnamon and stir to combine.
- Put chicken on onions. Scatter with olives and the lemon strips. Scatter over chicken. Mix stock and lemon juice. Pour over chicken.
- Cover the skillet and place over low heat, and cook about 30 minutes, until chicken is cooked through. Scatter parsley on top, and serve.
Really appreciate how you’ve mapped out the whole menu for us. I plan to serve this all at a dinner party. I get stressed if I have to do too much cooking the day of. You mentioned this reheated well. Do you think I could make the chicken dish the day before and then reheat it the next day for dinner? Thank you.
Made this tonight with Israeli Cous Cous. Sooo good! I love all the spices in the chicken dish! Really delicious! ♥️. I tried to post a photo on Instagram…but I am not too good with posting there. It is on Face book. So yummy! And I had all the ingredients right in my kitchen!
Could this be cooked in the oven ?
This is beautiful and delicious. Next time I'm adding preserved lemons!!
This was such a huge hit with everyone in the family! Thank you so much for this and all other recipes, they’re delicious! I just got back from smell & taste loss from Covid so it made it even more of a triumph with all the spices bouncing around!! Thank you!!
This looks amazing. However my husband HATES olives (I know, he’s missing out). Will the dish suffer if I leave them out or is there a good substitute??
Yummy!
I used chicken breasts and it was perfect!
I served it with cous cous with chick peas and fresh herbs
Something different! Lots of flavor and very tasty
This recipe was so delicious and simple, I will definitely be adding it to the regular rotation! The only change I would make is to finish the chicken off in the oven, rather than on the stove, so that the skin stays nice and crispy. I served this over rice and the rice soaked up all the delicious sauce, yum!