Lemon Chicken Tagine

Of the many dishes I learned to love while living in Morocco, I'm sad to say that this is the only one I know how to cook.

• 1 3-5 lb. chicken
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• a few strands of saffron (optional)
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon (optional)
• 1/4 cup each minced parsley and cilantro (optional)
• 1.5 c water or chicken stock
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1-2 dozen preserved purple olives
• 1-2 preserved lemons (see below)

Chop onion and mince garlic, and then mix these with the herbs and spices and some of the oil. Rinse and cut up the chicken. I like to remove the skin and reserve the wings, neck, and back for making stock. Rub chicken pieces well with the spice mixture. It wouldn't hurt to let the chicken marinate a while before cooking.

Heat oil and butter in a dutch oven or other heavy pot; add spices and chicken, turning pieces until all sides are golden. Add the lemon juice and the water or stock; bring to a boil and then simmer for an hour.

Cut preserved lemons in quarters and add to the tagine along with the olives. Simmer for 10 more minutes. Optionally, separate the solids from the pan juices and reduce the liquid to a thick sauce before serving.

Serve with rice or bread. If you were to eat this dish authentically, you wouldn't use any utensils -- you'd use small pieces of bread to help transport the meat and sauce to your mouth.

Find a largish jar with a cover and buy an amount of lemons that can be packed into it. Small, thin-skinned lemons are better. Wash the lemons and then cut each of them almost all the way through -- leave the halves just attached. In the opening place a big heaping spoonful of coarse salt. Pile the lemons in the jar and let them sit for 4 days; then fill to the very top with water. Cover and let them sit for at least 2 months; the lemons will eventually become soft and somewhat translucent.

Last modified: Sun Feb 13 15:15:36 2000