Tagine Djej bil Machmach

Chicken Tagine with Apricots

Whole chicken or chicken cut into portions is usual in Morocco. However, chicken breasts, off the bone and with the skin removed, are used in this dish to decrease the cooking time. When apricots are not in season, tinned apricots are a good alternative.

SERVES 4

4 × 175 g (6 oz) skinless, boneless chicken breasts

40 g (1½ oz) butter

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 brown onion, sliced

250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) chicken stock

6 coriander (cilantro) sprigs, tied in a bunch, plus extra to garnish

500 g (1 lb 2 oz) fresh apricots or 425 g (15 oz) tin apricot halves, in natural juice

2 tablespoons honey

1 quantity couscous

2 tablespoons slivered almonds, toasted

Trim the chicken breasts of any fat. Melt the butter in a large frying pan over low heat. Add the spices and stir for 1 minute. Increase the heat to medium, add the chicken and turn in the butter. Cook for 1 minute on each side without allowing the spices to burn.

Add the onion to the pan around the chicken and cook for 5 minutes, stirring the onion and turning the chicken occasionally. Add the chicken stock and coriander sprigs and season if necessary. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 5 minutes, turning the chicken once.

Wash and halve the apricots and remove the stones. Place the apricots in the pan around the chicken, cut-side down, and drizzle with the honey. Cover and simmer for 7–8 minutes, turning the apricots after 5 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate, cover and rest for 2–3 minutes. Slice each breast on the diagonal.

Put the hot couscous on serving plates and top with some sliced chicken. Remove the coriander sprigs from the sauce and spoon the sauce and apricots over the chicken. Scatter with the toasted almonds and the extra coriander and serve hot.

Fresh apricots are turned only once in the sauce towards the end of cooking, to keep them intact.