Moroccan Chicken Tagine

Chicken and Chickpeas Recipe

Braised chicken in a rich spice-infused sauce with chickpeas - Oh yes, this is GOOD 😋 Oven or slow cooker recipe.

Serve with couscous for an authentic Moroccan experience. 

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*Post updated January 2024*

Easy to make chicken tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish. Chicken pieces braised in a rich sauce with spices, garlic, onion and tomatoes.

Adding chickpeas makes this a filling meal. It's sweet rather than spicy so the whole family will love it.

What is a tagine?

Historically, it's a dish from North Africa and is the name given to the actual earthenware pot that the dish is cooked in.

Because the domed or cone-shaped lid of the Tagine pot traps steam and returns the condensed liquid to the pot, a minimal amount of water is needed to cook meats and vegetables.

Moroccan tagines are savoury stews typically made with meat, poultry or fish along with spices and vegetables and often fruit is added.

The result is melt-in-the-mouth meat or poultry which is tasty, warming and proper feel-good food.

Oh yes, I am obsessed with my tagine, in fact, that was the very first blog post I ever did here on this blog way back in 2008.

Good quality tinned tomatoes!

I know, I know, I'm always going on about it but you really do need to buy good quality tinned tomatoes otherwise the sauce will be watery and lacking in taste.

I use Ciro tinned tomatoes as, in my opinion, they are the best. They're really lovely, sweet tasting and the sauce is really thick.

Some tinned tomatoes are actually quite bitter and definitely not what you want! 😐

Ingredients

• Mild olive oil

• Chicken fillets

• Onion

• Garlic

• Tomato puree

• Rose harissa paste

• Black pepper

• Dried coriander

• Turmeric

• Cinnamon

• Cumin

• Runny honey

• Knorr chicken stock cube

• Tinned tomatoes

• Chickpeas

• Toasted flaked almonds and freshly chopped coriander

Rose harissa

You can, of course, use regular harissa paste (which is far cheaper) but I just love Rose Harissa by the brand Belazu, it's available on Amazon, Waitrose and Sainsbury's.

Rose Harissa has a slow-burning chilli heat, balanced with a sweet smokiness that adds a real depth of flavour to any dish.

The name Harissa comes from the Arabic harasa, meaning ‘to pound’ or break into pieces.

It's not far from a straight translation of the Italian pestare, to 'pound' or 'crush' - which is where we get the word 'pesto' from.

Sweet smoked paprika

Is another amazing ingredient in this dish and for me, La Chinata Sweet Smoked Paprika is the best. It is used by Gordon Ramsay and Rick Stein, so if it's good enough for them, it's good enough for me!

Over here in the UK, I've only ever seen it in Waitrose or Sainsbury's. It's available over at Amazon via my link above, but please be aware of the prices because it's only £2.45 in Sainsbury's. 😉

This Emile Henry Tagine is made from Flame Ceramic and can be used either directly on the heat or in the oven.

It's perfect for making delicious tagines, stews and any other recipe that requires simmering. It can be used on all direct heat sources: gas, electric or halogen (with an induction disk for induction hobs) and in the oven.

Mine is 35cm which is quite large, but it is available in smaller sizes.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tagine 

You can of course cook this recipe in a slow cooker, but just remember that cooking anything in a slow cooker (crockpot) results in more liquid being produced as it has nowhere to escape.

Therefore, I recommend making up the stock as shown in the recipe but only adding 100ml rather than 150ml as stated in the recipe. 

I cooked this in my slow cooker and it didn't need thickening at the end of cooking. You can buy a cheap slow cooker for as little as £30

But if yours does need thickening, I fully recommend McDougall's Instant Thickening Granules. But you don't want the sauce to be too thick, as the couscous will soon soak it up and it will be delicious.

 Anyway, on with the recipe!

Have you tried this recipe? Please leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ star rating in the recipe card below!

chicken tagine recipe, Moroccan chicken tagine, chicken and chickpeas recipe,

main, dinner,

Moroccan

Yield: 2

Author: Jan Bennett

Chicken and Chickpea Tagine

This is a colourful and truly mouthwatering dish that won't want to stop eating.

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 1 H & 25 MTotal time: 1 H & 40 M

Ingredients

• mild olive oil
• 2 nice fat skinless chicken fillets - cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 large onion - finely diced
• 2 fat cloves of garlic - minced or very finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon of tomato puree (paste in the US)

Spices and Honey

• 2 heaped tablespoons rose harissa paste - I use the brand Belazu
• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
• 1 teaspoon of coriander
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 2 heaped tablespoons of runny honey
• a good pinch of black pepper (no salt as the stock cube is already salty)

You will also need

• 1 Knorr chicken stock cube dissolved in just 150ml of hot water - use 100ml if cooking in a slow cooker
• 1 x 400g can of chopped tomatoes - use good quality ones or the sauce will not be half as nice
• 1 x 400 can of chickpeas - rinsed well and drained

For the couscous

• 140g couscous
• ½ of a Knoor chicken stock cube
• 200ml boiling water

To serve

• a handful of toasted flaked almonds
• freshly chopped coriander

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F or Gas 4

1. Heat up a tablespoon or so two of olive oil in a large frying pan or, directly into your Tagine (if it's flame-proof and can go on the stovetop).
2. Add the onions and cook gently over low heat, while stirring until the onions have softened, but are not coloured. This will take about 20 minutes; don't rush because it will allow the onions to become sweeter.
3. When the onions are almost done, add in the garlic and cook for a further 5 minutes, don't let the garlic burn or it will taste bitter.
4. Now add the tomato puree and cook for a minute before adding the honey and spices listed above.
5. Add another tablespoon of oil if needed and throw in the chicken pieces and the harissa paste. Turn for a couple of seconds to seal - don't let the chicken cook properly because it will cook when in the oven.
6. Pour in the stock and the tin of tomatoes including their juice - break up the tomatoes and then add the rinsed and well-drained chickpeas. *If cooking in a slow cooker you might want to add the chickpeas an hour before the end of cooking*
7. Bring to a boil and then pop the lid on the tagine or casserole dish and put it into the oven for about 45 - 50 minutes by which time the chicken should be cooked through (check) and, of course, piping hot.
8. Check, that your sauce isn't too thick as couscous tends to soak it up. Taste to check the seasoning and add more harissa or honey or whatever else you think it needs.

Make the couscous and serve

1. Put the couscous into a small bowl and put the kettle on to boil.
2. Dissolve the ½ stock cube in 200ml boiling water and add to the couscous.
3. Stir it and cover it with clingfilm, leave it to stand for 5 minutes.
4. Fluff it up with a fork and drizzle with a little olive oil.
5. To serve the tagine, sprinkle over the chopped coriander and toasted almonds and serve with the couscous.

Notes

To cook in a slow cooker you can cook on HIGH for 5 hours but, if cooking on high, I recommend adding the chickpeas an hour before the end of cooking.

Otherwise, cook on LOW for 7 hours or check the instructions that came with your slow cooker.

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