(cache)Moroccan Chicken with Lemon and Olives Recipe

[MUSIC PLAYING]

0 of 38 secondsVolume 0%

00:03

00:34

00:38

This video file cannot be played.(Error Code: 233011)

7 Egg Labels You Should Stop Paying Extra Money For

Why Make This

Moroccan spices and preserved lemon add bold, layered complexity to this chicken dish.
Olives, herbs, and raisins bring vibrant colors and flavors to the table.
Serve this dish family style right from the pot at casual gatherings.

A few years ago, I purchased a tagine, an earthenware cooking and serving pot common in North Africa, with which to experiment.

Have you ever tried cooking with a tagine? Or another type of clay pot?

There's something special about cooking with clay. The heating is more even than what you would get in a regular skillet, and the liquid that gets released from the food while it cooks bastes the food keeping it moist.

A tagine used on a stovetop gives you that wonderful slow, even cooking that you would normally get from an oven-braise. The conical top returns moisture to the food below, and when the dish is done, you can serve it right in the pot.

Tagine for Moroccan Chicken — Elise Bauer

My first foray into cooking with the tagine was with this Moroccan chicken dish which turned out beautifully—succulent, tender, and full of flavor.

I pulled the recipe together from various sources including the New York Times, The New Basics Cookbook, and recipes by Le Souk Ceramique, the maker of my tagine.

Preserved lemon is traditionally called for in this dish (very easy to make, by the way, all you need are lemons, salt, and time), and in my opinion, worth making just for this dish. But if you don't have any, you can easily use thin slices of regular lemon.

Also, you don't absolutely need to use a tagine to make this dish; just use a large, shallow, thick-bottomed, covered skillet.

With Couscous or Without?

Traditionally, tagines are not served with couscous or rice in Morocco. They'd be served with bread to sop up the thick sauce. However, rice or couscous make a wonderful non-traditional accompaniment to this recipe.

Cooking With Preserved Lemon

Preserved lemon is a unique ingredient that's at once very salty and very citrusy. There's nothing quite like it. This recipe instructs you to rinse off the preserved lemon, but most Moroccan cooks would not do that, as it also rinses off some of the flavor. You can opt to not rinse off the preserved lemon, but use a lighter hand in seasoning this dish with salt if you do.

How to Make Preserved Lemons

From the Editors

Prep Time:

1 hr 5 mins

Cook Time:

1 hr

Total Time:

2 hrs 5 mins

Servings:

4 to 6 servings

Yield:

Serves 4 to 6

Note:

This recipe shines with preserved lemons. If you don't have access to any, you can use thin slices of regular or Meyer lemon, and you'll likely need to add quite a bit of salt to the dish at the end.

If you use a tagine, you will likely need to soak it in water over-night before subjecting it to the heat of the stove. Doing so will help keep the tagine from cracking.

Keep Screen Awake

Ingredients

2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 chicken, 3 to 4 pounds, cut into 8 pieces (or 3 to 4 pounds of just chicken thighs and legs, the dark meat is more flavorful)
Salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, chopped
The rind from 1 preserved lemon, rinsed in cold water, pulp discarded, rind cut into thin strips (if you don't have preserved lemon, use whole thin slices of regular lemon)
1 cup green olives, pitted
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Marinate the chicken in spice rub:

Combine all the spices—paprika, cumin, ginger, turmeric, cinnamon, black pepper—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.

Elise Bauer
Brown the chicken pieces in tagine or skillet:

If you are using a clay tagine (if you have one, you must soak the bottom in water overnight before using), place it on a heat diffuser on the heating element to prevent the tagine from cracking, and place the olive oil in the tagine and heat it on medium heat.

Elise Bauer

Elise Bauer

If you do not have a tagine, you can use a thick-bottomed, large skillet with a cover. Heat the olive oil in the skillet on medium high heat.

In either case, sprinkle the chicken pieces very lightly with salt (go easy on the salt, the olives and preserved lemons are salty) and place skin side down in the tagine or skillet for 5 minutes, until lightly browned.

Elise Bauer
Add the garlic and onions, cover and cook:

Lower the heat to medium-low, add the garlic and onions over the chicken. Cover and let cook for 15 minutes.

Elise Bauer

Elise Bauer
Add the lemon, olives, raisins, water, then cover and simmer:

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.

Elise Bauer

Elise Bauer
Stir in the parsley, cilantro:

Mix in fresh parsley and cilantro right before serving. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Serve with couscous, rice, or rice pilaf.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

719	Calories
51g	Fat
16g	Carbs
48g	Protein

Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe 4 to 6
Calories 719
% Daily Value *
Total Carbohydrate 16g	6%
Dietary Fiber 3g	11%
Total Sugars 9g
Protein 48g	96%
Total Fat 51g	66%
Saturated Fat 13g	65%
Cholesterol 230mg	77%
Vitamin A 701mcg	78%
Vitamin C 13mg	14%
Vitamin D 0mcg	0%
Vitamin E 3mg	17%
Folate 78mcg	20%
Vitamin K 49mcg	41%
Sodium 905mg	39%
Calcium 79mg	6%
Iron 5mg	29%
Magnesium 70mg	17%
Potassium 735mg	16%
Zinc 4mg	34%
Vitamin B12 3mcg	108%
Omega 3 0g

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

Reviews (71)

Check out our Community Guidelines about reviews.

Moroccan Chicken with Lemon and Olives

My Rating

My Review

Featured Tweaks

SweetPeel6039

02/15/2007

Nice recipe - I made it in an Emile Henry tagine, over a heat diffuser, and it worked perfectly. I didn't find the preserved lemons, so I just added extra salt when I put in the olives and raisins, as well as a generous spray (about 1/8 cup) of lime juice with the water. Also, I added cayenne pepper to the rub. FYI, heat diffuser doubles as a nice flat-bread warmer.

ElfinBagel7793

03/29/2012

I've tried a few Moroccan chicken dishes but this is the best one by far. I used skinless/boneless chicken thighs, preserved Meyer lemons that I made a few months ago, did half green olives and half Kalamatas and added a bit of chopped up apricot along with raisins. It was amazing. And the smell in the house while it cooked, ummmmm..... this is a keeper for sure. Next time I may top with some almonds at end. My husband loved it too! Don't have a tangine, used my Staub dutch oven.

WorthyDip2299

06/03/2012

In my experience it's not absolutely necessary to use a tajine. (I don't like kitchen equipment that is only used for one purpose because I have a small kitchen.) I made this in an All-Clad saute pan using dried apricots instead of raisins, canned pitted green olives from Trader Joe's instead of Kalamatas, and chicken leg quarters. I used home-made chicken stock (made with leeks, carrots and left-over roast chicken bones) instead of water and served it with TJ's quinoa and some peas. It was awesome! My 14-year old (who is now eating 5 meals a day) ate 2 legs and a thigh, and is looking forward to leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I suggest NOT adding any salt (I had Moroccan preserved lemons on hand). I found it slightly too salty for my taste and will rinse everything better next time. The men thought it was great. For more great tagine recipes, check out Claudia Roden's Book of Jewish Food.

03/12/2019

I "fell in luv" with Mediterranean cooking when traveling thoughout Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. Later, when placed on a lo-sodium diet, I learned to appreciate the spices associated with Mediterranean cuisine which does not rely on salt and MSG. However, I found the clay based tagine too "cumbersome/labor intensive" to use. I, fortunately, discovered that LeCresuet (sp?) and Emile Henry cookware manufacture tagines that can be placed directly on a cooktop. The cooking process is similar (with what I call the funnel top) and the ease of the cookware use outweighs the care clay cookware requires.

Seagee

03/12/2007

I made this tonight, and it turned out great. A word to the wise though - it really only needs ONE preserved lemon - I added an extra half, thinking that if one was good, more would be better, but it was a bit too lemony. Next time I'll try with just plain lemons to see how different the flavor is.Thanks for the info on the tagines - I was planning on buying one, and now I'll get the Emile Henry one.

Carla

12/07/2011

Elise, Thank you for this recipe! I first tried it soon after you posted it, and have made it many times since then. It is one of my (and my husband's) favorite meals! I thought I should let readers know it works fine in a skillet, with regular lemons, and minimal advance work. I don't own a tagine, so I make it in a large deep skillet with a lid. I rarely remember to spice the meat in advance. So I just mix up the spices (LOVE these spices!), coat a whole bunch of chicken drumsticks, and start cooking. I have experimented with the lemon addition. Sometimes I cut thin slices of fresh lemon. Other times I cut fresh lemon peels (I use a zester or sharp knife to do this to a whole lemon, resulting in a poor naked lemon remnant). I like the peels best, because they taste surprisingly sweet after cooking. Yum! Thanks so much for sharing this. I hate to think that people may see that it's a tagine recipe and never bother to try it. Although my modifications may make it less than authentic, it is delicious!

VickyB

06/10/2009

Hi thereJust wanted to say thanks for this recipe - we cooked it for a dinner party for inlaws who do not generally eat what is put on their plate and most of it got eaten... have just made again just for the 2 of us and it's just as yummy as I remembered... I have not used preserved lemons - couldn't get the first time and it worked fine - we just use lemon zest (1 lemon) in the chicken and the juice of the lemon in the cous cous - thanks again - it's a keeper!

StrongYam7864

11/09/2006

I made this last weekend and it was wonderful! I didn't have the preserved lemon so I used the lemon slices as you suggested. I used Thompson raisins (organic, bulk) and the flavors were heavenly. I also used only thighs and legs but will probably try it with boneless, skinless chicken breasts next time. I don't have a tangine so I used my heavy, flat skillet. Thanks for a great recipe and a great website!

randi

06/04/2012

Used my tagine for the first time yesterday and made this. The chicken was divine and the house smelled so good. I loved the preserved lemon in here. Definitely add the chopped toasted almonds as was mentioned above.

Weiwen Ng

12/25/2011

I added a pinch of saffron to this in place of the tumeric, and I used artichoke hearts in place of the raisins. It was good. Very good.

Christelle

03/24/2006

If you want more vegetables in your chicken tajine, you may want to add a bag of frozen petite peas as well as a bag of frozen artichokes when you add your water and lemon.Delicious!

71 Reviews

Debs

10/29/2020

Great success! I adapted slightly by using harissa paste. Even my son, who is fussy loved the flavours. Used a skillet to brown everything off then transferred to tagine to slow cook on the oven. Meat falling from bones, and loads of lovely juice to soak into the couscous.

Kelly

08/03/2020

This was so amazing!!! Cooked it in a skillet using boneless, skinless chicken breasts (we don't like dark meat) and it still came out moist and delicious. Picky hubby said I had to make this again.I also added some chopped up dried apricots along with the raisins because I had some that needed to be used up.I highly recommend using preserved lemon. They are so easy to make and last for a long time.

OrangeVeal6761

07/29/2020

Quick, easy and yummy! Great recipe!Thanks!

Jessica

07/13/2020

This came out awesome! So flavourful and easy to prepare. I used dried cranberries as I didn't haha was any raisins and the result was fantastic!

Linda Grimes

07/10/2020

This is such a wonderful dish...the layers of flavors are like an explosion in your mouth. I want to make this for a girlfriends birthday dinner and one of my guests does not eat meat. I'm thinking of searing a piece of salmon for her...do you think that would work if I added it for the last 10 minutes or so of cooking?Thanks for all of the good recipes over the years. You're in my kitchen a lot with me and I'm never disappointed in anything I make for the first time!

Sonia

03/22/2020

I love this recipe so much and have made it about 8 times already. It was a search for a great chicken dish to use my brand new Emille Henri Tagine that brought me to discover this website.I use a large regular lemon sliced thinly. Words cannot describe how delicious the lemon turns out combined with the olives and plump raisins and perfect chicken. Try it!I had to make it yesterday without paprika and it was still great!

Debby

02/26/2020

This was a delicious. I did not have thighs so I used chicken breasts. Next time I use the thighs. I had to use a skillet with a lid and I used regular lemons. Still a great dish.

lswinfla

01/08/2020

This has become my signature dish! The family begs for it:)

VioletPop2521

12/30/2018

1) confession - haven't cooked your version2) thanks for reminder that oven can perform more tagine-like slow, even braise3) thanks for dry rub tip which I'll build into my version4) agreed re preserved lemons as special to dish - suggestion: since you suggest authentic preserved lemons...try building in authentic ras el hanout spice blend - available in same shops/websites

Explore more:

Moroccan Chicken with Lemon and Olives

Why Make This

With Couscous or Without?

Cooking With Preserved Lemon

Ingredients

Directions

Marinate the chicken in spice rub:

Brown the chicken pieces in tagine or skillet:

Add the garlic and onions, cover and cook:

Add the lemon, olives, raisins, water, then cover and simmer:

Stir in the parsley, cilantro:

Nutrition Facts (per serving)

Reviews (71)

Related Articles