Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon and Olives

I have found that the most interesting people, places, and cuisines are often the result of disparate influences colliding and then merging into something new and wonderful. While I have yet to visit Morocco, in my mind it is one of these places; a fascinating crossroads where Europe, Africa, and the Middle East mixed over the centuries to create a richly complex culture.

The cuisine of Morocco intrigues me, blending familiar and foreign ingredients in ways that are novel to my North American palate. Whenever I set out to cook a Moroccan dish I feel a sense of excitement and adventure. Mr. B shares my fascination with Moroccan cuisine and to encourage my adventures gave me a tagine and Moroccan cookbook for Christmas. You may recall that I shared my first foray into the book here, with the recipe for preserved Meyer lemons. After patiently waiting months for the lemons to "preserve" it was finally time to break them out of our dark pantry and into a Moroccan dish.

The first dish that came to mind when I thought about preserved lemons was a chicken tagine incorporating big olives and chunks of preserved lemon in a fragrant stew. I don't know where this image came from, but surprisingly it wasn't in my Moroccan cookbook; so I looked around to find a recipe. Google came to the rescue as usual and I stumbled across the fascinating website Culinary Anthropologist. The site belongs to a couple who took a year-long culinary journey around Europe, Turkey, North and West Africa. He's a linguist, she's a San Francisco chef, and together they have a wonderful selection of recipes and stories. Their recipe adapted from a Moroccan cooking class was just what I wanted. (Though I opted to skip killing my own chicken- so I guess I can't claim to be truly authentic!)

Mr. B and I are both big fans of braising. In fact, I even have an entire section of the Phoo-D recipe index devoted to this method. However, when the Midwest weather goes from freeze-your-buns-off cold to burning-car-seats hot, my braising standbys take a break. Happily this method for a stove top braise (you don't need a tagine, they're just fun) works very well when the weather is warm. In fact, I may even be tempted to try a tagine on the grill if things get really hot. Preserved lemons are key to creating the depth of flavor and unique salty tang in this recipe. I've heard you can buy them at specialty stores but they are also really easy to make.

An aroma of chicken, saffron, lemon, and olives had us lifting the lid repeatedly for whiffs of the simmering goodness. The finished dish was absolutely delicious. Matt and Anna's suggestion to use bread to sop up the cooking liquid was spot on and we greedily dug into the dish with our hands and big hunks of bread. Nibbling on savory chicken, slurping up the lemony broth, and popping juicy olives into our mouths we both agreed that it was just the beginning of our Moroccan adventures.

Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon and Olives (Printable Recipe)
Adapted from Culinary Anthropologist
Serves 4

Ingredients:
4 chicken legs
1 lemon, juiced
Salt
2 medium red onions, finely sliced or diced
1 Tablespoon minced/grated garlic
1 Tablespoon powdered ginger
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cumin (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground saffron threads (optional)
1/8 teaspoon hot chilli powder (optional)
4 teaspoons parsley stems, minced
4 Tablespoons coriander stems, minced
1 preserved lemon, rinsed and diced (pulp removed if very salty)
1 1/2 cups violet or green olives (not pitted)
1 1/4 cups water

2/3 cup olive oil

1 Tablespoon butter, softened (for optional final step)
Coriander leaves to garnish

Equipment:
Tagine or Large stove-top-safe heavy casserole dish with lid

Directions:
Arrange chicken legs in the bottom of your tagine (or casserole dish). Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and lemon juice. Set aside and allow to marinate for 30 minutes. While chicken is marinating prep the other ingredients.

Once the chicken has marinated, add all remaining ingredients except the olive oil and butter into the tagine. Mix gently with your hands to incorporate the seasonings and ingredients throughout the dish. Set aside for another 30 minutes.

Add olive oil into the dish, and cover with the tagine or casserole lid. Place dish over low heat. Allow dish to cook slowly for about 75 minutes, until the chicken appears tender and begins to pull away from the bones. Stir the mixture carefully while it is cooking to make sure the chicken is not sticking to the bottom of your tagine.

Once the chicken is tender, turn off the heat and transfer the chicken pieces to a grilling rack set in a large foil-lined baking sheet. Smear the softened butter all over the top of the chicken skins (yes this seems excessive, but trust me it's delicious) and place the pan underneath the broiler. Watch the chicken very closely and as soon as it turns golden brown pull the pan out of the oven. While the chicken is broiling, turn on the burner underneath your tagine to medium-high and briskly simmer the sauce until it is reduced to a thickness of your liking. Taste the sauce to determine if it needs additional salt or pepper. Return the broiled chicken to the tagine and sprinkle coriander leaves on top to garnish.

Don't forget to serve with a pita or crusty bread to mop up the sauce!