Feast

D’JAJ BEL BATATA LEH’LOUA

MOROCCO

In every medina or souk in Morocco, there is a section where they sell live birds, usually chickens and pigeons. The customer chooses the birds he or she wants. The vendor then takes them out of the cage, slits their throat, and throws them in a barrel to thrash out their last breath. Once completely dead, he lifts them out and plucks them by holding them against an antiquated rotating machine that removes the feathers in seconds. After that he dunks the birds in water that looks as if it is teeming with a million germs—he changes it only once a day—before putting them in a bag for the customer to take home where he or she not surprisingly will wash them carefully before cooking. This particular tagine is one of my favorite sweet-savory ones. I like to make it with quail instead of the more traditional chicken. You can also use squab or poussin.

SERVES 6

6 quail

1 medium onion (about 5 ounces/150 g), grated on the fine side of a grater

1 teaspoon ground ginger

¾ teaspoon finely ground black pepper

½ teaspoon ras el-hanout

Good pinch of saffron threads

Sea salt

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 pound 10 ounces (750 g) sweet potatoes, peeled, quartered lengthwise, and cut into medium chunks

1¼ cups (200 g) golden raisins

3 tablespoons good-quality honey

Moroccan Bread, for serving

1. Put the quail, onion, spices, and a little salt in a large pot. Add 2 cups (500 ml) water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add the oil, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the pan and let bubble gently for 30 minutes, or until the quail are done and the sauce is reduced by three-quarters.

2. Remove the quail to a serving platter and keep warm.

3. Add the sweet potatoes and golden raisins to the sauce. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the golden raisins have plumped. If the sauce is too runny, increase the heat and boil it hard uncovered for a few minutes, until you have a silky sauce. Carefully stir in the honey, making sure you don’t mash up the potatoes. Let bubble, uncovered, for a few more minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

4. Arrange the sweet potatoes and golden raisins all around the quail and spoon the sauce all over. Serve very hot with Moroccan bread.