This delicious North African dish is perfect for a blustery winter day. You can make it as hot as you like, and the mix of spices will infuse your whole home with warmth and mouthwatering flavor. The only rub is that I'm making this from my own distant childhood memories, so the measurements are a bit arbitrary. But there's something magical about cooking this way, we think: A pinch of this, two shakes of that. Not every good dish comes with exact instructions; sometimes, you just have to trust your judgment, and your senses, spice things up, and see what you can create. Saha, as they say in Arabic. (To your health.)
Ingredients: (serves 4 to 5)
6- 8 Chicken thighs (and / or drumsticks) bone-in, and skin on
1 medium onion, sliced thinly
5 cloves of garlic, sliced
olive oil
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
6 medium carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 large lemon
1 small handfull chopped fresh cilantro ( and / or parsely, for garnish)
hot sauce (optional, for garnish)
Spice mix:
About 2 tablespoons of paprika (we use sweet, but you can use a mix of hot and sweet for extra heat)
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cinamon
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons coriander powder
2 pinches of sugar
Several pinches each of salt & pepper
To prepare:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Mix spices and divide mixture in half. Sprinkle then rub half over raw chicken, and let sit while you cook onions (as follows).
In a cast iron dutch oven, tajine pot, or similar shallow pan, heat about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil, to coat bottom of pan, and cook onions over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes or until tender.
Add garlic, tomato paste, the juice of half your lemon, and the other half of your spice mix, and cook a couple minutes more over low heat, stirring, and being careful not to burn the spices or garlic.
Add chicken to pan, skin-side UP, with about 2 cups of water, too, (or enough to almost cover chicken, but not the skin on top).
Bring dish to simmer, scoop out any oil that has bubbled up, and transfer the pan, keeping the lid OFF, to the rack in middle of your oven.
Cook about 25 minutes, then check to skim out more grease, and add a little more water, so that the meat does not dry out. You want to keep the liquid level close to the top of the chicken (see photos above). Add peeled carrots at this point too.
Return to oven and continue to braise chicken in liquid, another 15-20 minutes or so, until carrots are tender but not overdone, and meat is cooked through. When dish is done, remove any left over excess oil from liquid before serving.
Serve immediately over white rice, with a wedge of fresh lemon, a good sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro and / or parsely as garnish, and your favorite hot sauce. While my daughter's been enjoying this dish since she got her first baby teeth, I didn't taste Moroccan food until we moved to Rabat, just after my ninth birthday. But no matter what age you are when you first eat this, chances are, you're going to love it. If nothing else, it's a refreshing, flavor-packed departure from most food we eat here in America today. Enjoy!
Ingredients: (serves 4 to 5)
6- 8 Chicken thighs (and / or drumsticks) bone-in, and skin on
1 medium onion, sliced thinly
5 cloves of garlic, sliced
olive oil
2 tablespoons of tomato paste
6 medium carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
1 large lemon
1 small handfull chopped fresh cilantro ( and / or parsely, for garnish)
hot sauce (optional, for garnish)
Spice mix:
About 2 tablespoons of paprika (we use sweet, but you can use a mix of hot and sweet for extra heat)
1 tablespoon of cumin
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon cinamon
1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
1 1/2 teaspoons coriander powder
2 pinches of sugar
Several pinches each of salt & pepper
To prepare:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Mix spices and divide mixture in half. Sprinkle then rub half over raw chicken, and let sit while you cook onions (as follows).
In a cast iron dutch oven, tajine pot, or similar shallow pan, heat about 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil, to coat bottom of pan, and cook onions over medium heat 4 to 5 minutes or until tender.
Add garlic, tomato paste, the juice of half your lemon, and the other half of your spice mix, and cook a couple minutes more over low heat, stirring, and being careful not to burn the spices or garlic.
Add chicken to pan, skin-side UP, with about 2 cups of water, too, (or enough to almost cover chicken, but not the skin on top).
Bring dish to simmer, scoop out any oil that has bubbled up, and transfer the pan, keeping the lid OFF, to the rack in middle of your oven.
Cook about 25 minutes, then check to skim out more grease, and add a little more water, so that the meat does not dry out. You want to keep the liquid level close to the top of the chicken (see photos above). Add peeled carrots at this point too.
Return to oven and continue to braise chicken in liquid, another 15-20 minutes or so, until carrots are tender but not overdone, and meat is cooked through. When dish is done, remove any left over excess oil from liquid before serving.
Serve immediately over white rice, with a wedge of fresh lemon, a good sprinkle of chopped fresh cilantro and / or parsely as garnish, and your favorite hot sauce. While my daughter's been enjoying this dish since she got her first baby teeth, I didn't taste Moroccan food until we moved to Rabat, just after my ninth birthday. But no matter what age you are when you first eat this, chances are, you're going to love it. If nothing else, it's a refreshing, flavor-packed departure from most food we eat here in America today. Enjoy!
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