About two weeks ago, Simply Recipes posted a recipe for Moroccan Chicken with Lemon & Olives. I knew I had to try it.
So this past Wednesday I invited the Joyous over for some tasty chicken and LOST.
Moroccan Chicken with Lemon and Olives
from Simply Recipes (w/some notes by me)
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon tumeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 chicken, 3-4 lbs, cut into 8 pieces (or 3-4 lbs of just chicken thighs and legs, the dark meat is more flavorful) (I just bought a pre-cut up chicken, it worked well)
Salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
The peel from 1 preserved lemon, rinsed in cold water, pulp discarded, peel cut into thin strips
(I had two regular lemons. One I sliced thinly, the other I peeled into large zesty strips, then juiced that lemon)
1 cup green olives, pitted (we had Kalamata olives)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup raisins (we had Golden Raisins, I think Nigella calls them sultanas!)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (I prepared both and forgot them, I was moved to drooling and wanted to eat)
1. Combine all the spices in a large bowl. Pat dry the chicken pieces and put in the bowl, coat well with the spice mixture. Let the chicken stand for one hour in the spices.
2. In a large, heavy bottomed skillet, heat the olive oil on medium high heat. Add the chicken pieces, sprinkle lightly with salt (go easy on the salt, the olives and preserved lemons are salty), and brown, skin side down for five minutes. (If you are using a clay tagine, you will skip the browning step, heat only to medium heat and use a heat diffuser on the heating element to prevent the tagine from cracking.) Lower the heat to medium-low, add the garlic and onions. Cover and let cook for 15 minutes.
3. Turn chicken pieces over. Add the lemon slices, olives, raisins, and 1/2 cup water. Bring to a simmer on medium heat, then lower the heat to low, cover, and cook for an additional 30 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and quite tender. (I used the regular skillet and covered it partially to help keep some heat in and allow some steam to escape)
4 Mix in fresh parsley and cilantro right before serving. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Serves 4 to 6. Serve with couscous, rice, or rice pilaf. (I served with couscous that had toasted pine nuts, cilantro and 'sultanas.')
Further Reading:
Seven Essential Spices in a Moroccan Kitchen
Testing Tagines from the New York Times
Flights to Marrakech from Expedia-if you are interested!
5 comments:
Although I think this would certainly be different (and perhaps better) with preserved lemons, it was really delicious. Use good quality olives, because they are a key flavor in there.
This version was a tad on the sweeter side compared to what we had at Marrakesh restaurant, but still very good in its own right.
How'd it taste compared iwth Marrakaesh.
How'd it taste compared iwth Marrakaesh.
The tastes were pretty close, but not spot on. That might be the lemon. The Marrakesh chicken was a little more moist and had a nice crispy skin. Mine was moist, but not as moist and the skin was just on the verge of crisp. I think these differences are based on the style of cooking...stove top vs. oven.
Marrakesh was different, but Scotte's was just as good. And I appreciated getting to use utencils. While I enjoy eating food with my fingers, I like a fork even better.
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