Submitted by admin on
Good mis en place will make this an easy recipe to follow. You can use a dutch oven instead of Tagine.
I recommend removing the skin from the chicken and making sure to remove and clean any blood or gibblets as it will "brown speckle" the dish.
Also remove the parsley and cilantro after 10 minutes to prevent it from breaking appart and staining the dish green and wrap it in cheesecloth just in case.
Chicken will cook for 30 min with ingredients, you will add the honey mixture for the last 10 minutes.
Ingredients
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (more or less depending on strenth of cinnamon powder)
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoons salt (for marinade more for onions and to taste)
Olive Oil
1 chicken/hen, cut into 6 pieces, skin removed, wings and backbone discarded (you can use 6-8 chicken thighs)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 large yellow onion, halved, then sliced 1/4 inch thick
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Fresh cilantro
Fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/2 cup of water
3 tablespoons mild honey
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 cup dried Turkish apricots, separated into halves
1/3 cup whole blanched almonds
Directions
Stir together ground cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, pepper, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Add chicken and turn to coat well. Marinate for 30 minutes, minimum.
Heat butter and 1 tablespoon oil in base of tagine, uncovered, over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Cook almonds, stirring occasionally, until just golden, 1 to 2 minutes, remove. Add chicken, skin sides down, turning over once, 8 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
Add onion and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, until soft, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Add parsley/cilantro bundle, 1/2 cup water or broth, chicken, and any juices accumulated on plate. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 30 minutes.
While chicken cooks, bring honey, remaining cup water, cinnamon stick, and apricots to a boil in a 1- to 2-quart heavy saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until apricots are very tender (add more water if necessary). Once apricots are tender, simmer until liquid is reduced to a glaze, 10 to 15 minutes.
Ten minutes before chicken is done, add apricot mixture to tagine. Serve chicken sprinkled with almonds on top and decorate with additional parsley and the cinammon stick.
