chicken tagine

18 Feb, 2025

Adapted from Baija Lafrida @ Epicurious

Ingredients

Chicken

• 4 chicken quarters cut into thighs and legs (8 pieces total)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon turmeric
• ½ teaspoon black pepper (omit for AIP)
• 1 teaspoon salt

Sauce

• 1 medium red onion, halved, then sliced 1/4 inch thick
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 5 fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 5 sprigs fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
• ½ cup chicken broth

Apricots

• ½ cup dried Turkish apricots, separated into halves
• 1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
• 1 cup chicken broth

Almonds (omit for AIP)

• ⅓ cup whole blanched almonds
• salt, to taste

Instructions

1. In a small prep bowl, mix ground cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, and salt. Coat chicken with the spices.

2. Heat generous amount of oil in base of tagine (or in skillet) over moderate heat. Brown chicken, skin sides down. Turn over once and brown the other side, for a total of 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3. Add onion and ¼ teaspoon salt to tagine and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add cilantro and parsley to tagine and then cover with ½ cup broth, chicken, and any juices accumulated on plate. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.

4. While chicken cooks, bring 1 cup of broth, cinnamon stick, and apricots to a boil in a saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until apricots are very tender (adding more broth if necessary). Once apricots are tender, simmer uncovered until liquid is reduced to a glaze, 10 to 15 minutes.

5. SKIP FOR AIP While apricots cook, heat 2 tbsp oil in a small skillet over moderate heat and cook almonds, stirring occasionally, until just golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.

6. Ten minutes before chicken is done, add apricot mixture to tagine. Discard cinnamon stick, then serve chicken sprinkled with almonds on top.