Dishes in tagine: recipes, cooking features, photos, reviews

Is this a dish or a utensil?

It is assumed that the name “tagine” comes from the dish of the same name. Since ancient times, in the Maghreb countries (Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, Mauritania) it was customary to prepare a traditional dish with this name. Gourmets from all over the world appreciated this “Maghreb miracle”. A classic tagine is a combination of lamb on the bone with vegetables, spices and dried or fresh fruit. Also, often the dish is not complete without adding nuts and honey. Well, of course, you need special utensils - tagine!

Dishes cooked in tagine are distinguished by a special aroma and unique tenderness: they can only be eaten with the lips. This food is also characterized by sweetness, as they like to cook in African countries. In ancient times, before the spread of potatoes, people used rice as a vegetable base. It turns out that the most ancient dish in tagine is pilaf with the addition of sweet ingredients! Next you will get acquainted with one of the recipes of African origin.

What do you know about tagine

Very similar to the French word, isn't it? But in fact, tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish and the name of the vessel in which this dish is prepared. The modern newfangled cooking technology of slow cooking has actually been used by the Berbers of North Africa for centuries. And it is the tagine that defines Moroccan and Berber cuisine. Although, of course, tagines are traditionally prepared in neighboring countries - Tunisia, Algeria - but the recipes there are completely different, different from Moroccan ones. I like Moroccan ones much better.

Externally, a tagine looks like a dish with a side, which is covered with a high cone-shaped lid. Its diameter can range from 15–20 centimeters to half a meter. The food is cooked at a low temperature, under the lid, and when everything is ready, the lid is removed and eaten directly from the dish in which it was cooked.

In every Moroccan city, craftsmen hand-apply patterns of their traditional colors, passed on from generation to generation. When I was traveling around Morocco, what caught my eye most were the tagines painted in Essaouira, Fez and Sal.

But even a simple clay tagine that costs three to five euros, without decorative designs, will cook food properly. In our stores you can find expensive tagines produced by famous European companies. There are even modern ones that can be used on induction surfaces. Well, I brought myself some real Moroccan ones. I cook in them.

I received my first recipes from the Berber chef Aziz. We became friends with him in Marrakech. Oriental spices and seasonings were a real revelation. The main spices that are added to the traditional Moroccan tagine during cooking are coriander, cumin, black and red pepper, ginger, paprika, saffron, cinnamon, anise, cloves, galangal root, cardamom. In the East there is a seasoning made from a mixture of spices - baharat. All these seasonings are already mixed in it in certain proportions, and all you have to do is add it to the dish. Salted lemons are also popular in Morocco. They are also added to tagines as a seasoning.

A classic tagine is prepared by pre-marinating meat, poultry or fish in spices. They are most often fried, and then placed in a pyramid along with coarsely chopped raw vegetables, all the spices are added and simmered over low heat for a couple of hours without opening the lid. According to the Moroccan tradition, poultry and fish are marinated in the classic Arabic marinade chermoula - a mixture of lemon juice, olive oil, herbs and spices.

The main trick when cooking in a tagine is precisely the cone-shaped shape of its lid. Thanks to it, in a tagine placed on a small fire, there is constant air circulation, moisture condenses on the walls of the pyramidal lid, cools and slowly flows down, where it heats up again, and everything repeats.

The traditional cooking of this dish over coals comes from time immemorial. But many Berber chefs in Morocco, if it is not possible to cook on smoldering coals, use conventional gas stoves, placing the tagine on a divider for more even and gradual heating. If the tagine is placed over very hot coals or high heat, it may burn or even crack. If you have a clay tagine and you haven’t cooked with it for a long time, you should definitely soak it in water overnight.

During my travels to Morocco, I tried many different tagines: with meat, poultry, fish. I will share with you one of the recipes. It makes a medium-sized tagine, about four servings.

Ingredients:

• chicken legs - 1 kg;
• onions - 2 pcs.;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• pumpkin - 200 g;
• bell red pepper - 1 pc.;
• carrots - 1 pc.;
• red chili pepper - 1 pc.;
• prunes - 10 pcs.;
• olive oil - 50 g;
• salt - to taste;
• black pepper - 1/4 tsp;
• paprika - 1/4 tsp;
• dried ginger - 1/2 tsp;
• cumin - 1/4 tsp;
• coriander - 1/4 tsp;
• saffron - a pinch;
• garlic - 2 cloves;
• 1/4 salted lemon;
• honey - 1 tbsp;
• cinnamon - 1/2 tsp;
• roasted almonds - 50 g;
• black sesame (for serving) - 5 g;
• cilantro - 10 g.

Pilaf with sweet pepper

To prepare this dish in a tagine you will need:

• 200 grams of sweet pepper;
• 2.5 cups rice;
• 5 glasses of water;
• 70 grams of vegetable oil;
• 3 tomatoes;
• 1 onion;
• allspice, herbs, salt - to taste.

Let's start cooking. Before you start cooking a sweet dish in a tagine in the oven, you must thoroughly rinse the rice under hot water.

Pour oil into a bowl and fry the rice until yellowish. Add sweet peppers cut into small cubes, pieces of tomatoes without skin, mix and fry everything for several minutes. Add sautéed onions, allspice, salt to the mixture and add water (you can use broth). Cook the pilaf over low heat for 15-30 minutes in the oven. It is necessary to ensure that the rice does not overcook.

Spicy shrimp Moroccan style

• Time: 30-40 min.
• Number of servings: 4 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 750 kcal.
• Purpose: main courses.
• Cuisine: Moroccan.
• Difficulty: low.

Creating such an exquisite dinner of seafood delicacies will not take much time. Shrimp are cooked very quickly using tagine, making them tender and juicy. As a result, they should be added shortly before the entire dish is ready. Overcooked seafood will be difficult to chew, and the meal will not be enjoyable. If desired, the Moroccan shrimp dish can be made spicier by adding harissa sauce, which is very popular in African countries. It consists of hot pepper ground into a paste.

Ingredients:

• peeled shrimp – 750 g;
• cherry tomatoes – 12-15 pcs.;
• garlic – 5 cloves;
• olive oil – 2 tbsp. l.;
• lemon – 2-3 slices;
• paprika – 1 tsp;
• cayenne pepper – ¼ tsp;
• cumin – ¼ tsp;
• bay leaf – 2 pcs.;
• salt – ½ tsp;
• ground black pepper – ¼ tsp;
• fresh parsley – ½ bunch;
• cilantro – ½ bunch.

Cooking method:

1. Wash the cherry tomatoes thoroughly and cut them into halves.
2. Chop the garlic.
3. Heat the tagine with olive oil and add the tomatoes and garlic.
4. Simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Add shrimp, herbs, and spices to the tomatoes.
6. Salt and pepper.
7. Mix everything, place lemon on top and simmer for another 10 minutes.
8. If the broth has evaporated, you can add a couple of tablespoons of water.

Subtleties of cooking dishes in tagine

Photos of such dishes show them incredibly appetizing. Interestingly, according to custom, the lid of the tagine must be removed three times: when adding vegetables and fruits, to add spices, and when serving. However, this process can be significantly simplified. If a dish in a tagine recipe includes only vegetables and fruits, the lid is removed only once, when serving. By the way, this dietary delicacy is popular in France. They call it "vegetable heaven." Let's plunge into French everyday life with the following recipe.

Vegetable paradise in French (tagine dish recipe with photo)

To prepare you need to take:

• 1 zucchini;
• 1 eggplant;
• 2 tomatoes;
• 2 sweet peppers;
• one onion.

The marinade for the dish is prepared from the following ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil;
• 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar;
• pepper, salt - optional;
• 1 chili pepper (preferably in oil);
• 1 sprig of rosemary (in oil);
• 2 cloves of garlic;
• 1 tablespoons of fat sour cream.

To serve we take:

• 1 pack of mozzarella cheese;
• fresh herbs to taste.

Let’s start cooking the dish in a tagine according to the “Vegetable Paradise” recipe.

We wash our vegetables. Cut eggplant, zucchini, tomatoes, onions and peppers into rings (no more than 1 cm), put everything in a bowl. Prepare the marinade by mixing all its components. Pour the prepared marinade over the chopped vegetables and let them sit for 3-4 minutes.

We lay out the vegetables one by one in a circle around the tagine - we should get a multi-colored “accordion”. We put rosemary, chili, chopped garlic on top, pour the rest of our marinade on top.

Cover with a lid and heat over low heat for about 25 minutes. Serve with pieces of mozzarella cheese and herbs to taste on a large platter.

Bon appetit!

Interesting notes

Traditionally, of course, tagine should be served in the container in which it was prepared. However, this rule does not apply to a large cast-iron tagine, designed for a large number of servings.

In ancient times, these dishes were only ceramic, but now their base is made of metal. But in their “homeland” such innovations are not approved: a real tagine should be made of ceramics, Africans believe.

It’s interesting: the handmade dishes that were brought to us from the Maghreb countries are painted with sacred patterns. For religious reasons, it is believed that the beautiful design of the appearance of food helps strengthen the family, energizes it with longevity and good health, fertility and wealth in accordance with the meaning of the amulet design. A cook who has evil plans can bring misfortune to those for whom the dishes are intended, so you must approach cooking with a pure and light heart.

By the way, there are more than one thousand recipes for dishes cooked in tagine (in the oven). But the most favorite type of tagine among tourists is Moroccan-style lamb. The Moroccan tagine dish can be found not only in restaurants, but also on the streets and markets - in Morocco this is another attraction for gourmet travelers.

Popular manufacturers

When choosing a model, you need to pay attention first of all to its manufacturer. Products from Emile Henry are considered to be some of the highest quality. For their manufacture, high-quality heat-resistant ceramics are used, which have the same heat-resistant coating in the form of glaze.

An equally excellent alternative to products from a foreign manufacturer is Russian dishes. It is famous not only for its excellent quality, but also for its fairly affordable cost. The line of this company is represented by products with different bowl diameters and a regular dome-shaped lid. Their main feature, and at the same time a disadvantage, is that you can cook in tagines only in the microwave and oven.

Stainless steel cookware from Vetta comes with the steamer. The bowl of this tagine is used for stewing and cooking. Moreover, stainless steel products can withstand the temperature of any stove, including induction.

Emile Henry

Borisov ceramics

Tajine in Moroccan

We will need:

• 700-800 grams of lamb on the bone;
• 2-3 tbsp. spoons of olive oil;
• 2 pieces of red onion;
• 3 cloves of garlic;
• a small piece of ginger root;
• 2 cinnamon sticks;
• 2 teaspoons coriander;
• 12 pieces pitted prunes;
• zest of half an orange;
• 1.5 tbsp. spoons of dark honey;
• ground black pepper, salt - optional;
• cilantro, boiled couscous - for serving.

First you need to soak the dried apricots and prunes. Pour oil into the tagine, heat to medium temperature, add chopped almonds and fry until golden brown, stirring constantly. Add chopped onion and garlic, fry until transparent and soft. Add finely grated ginger, cinnamon, coriander, mix and lay out the pieces of lamb. You need to stir everything until all the meat is covered with onions and spices on all sides.

Fill with water - the meat should be completely covered with liquid and simmer over medium heat under the lid for one hour. Next, add dried apricots, orange zest and prunes and simmer for about another half hour. Then add salt, pepper, honey, mix thoroughly, leave on the fire for another 10-15 minutes.

Once cooked, serve with bread (you can dip it in the sauce) and couscous as a side dish. Separately, it is worth serving dishes with chopped cilantro.

How to cook tagine

Poultry, fish, vegetables and fruits can replace meat in tagine dishes. The cooking time will depend on the choice of the main ingredient. Chicken cooks faster than meat, but longer than fish. Seafood must be added to the dish before finishing cooking. It is traditional to add honey, nuts, dried apricots, raisins, dates, generously flavored with ginger and spices. Such dishes perfectly combine the bitterness of hot pepper, the sweetness of prunes and the spiciness of paprika. Vegetarian dishes are very tasty.

In Moroccan

Few people understand how to cook such an exotic dish. Traditional Moroccan tagine is made from meat or poultry on the bone. The pieces are chosen large. Vegetables chosen: potatoes, eggplants, tomatoes, onions. Add berries, dried fruits, lemon, a variety of herbs and spices such as cilantro, cinnamon, turmeric, cumin and garlic. Due to the circulation of liquid inside the cookware, there is no need to add water. All ingredients will simmer over low heat for several hours. This culinary masterpiece, stewed in its own juice, will captivate you with its unique taste.

In Tunisian

This type of dish has differences in the method of preparation, but is no less popular. Remembering how to cook a tagine in Tunisian style is not difficult. In this case, meat and poultry need to be finely chopped. In addition to vegetables, add chickpeas or beans for thickness and uniformity of the dish. Everything is stewed over low heat, after which eggs, cheese and spices are added. The finished mixture must be transferred to a clay dish and baked. The result will be something similar to a flatbread or omelette with a delicious crispy crust. It is better to serve the dish with hot sauce.

What other dishes can you prepare?

As the practice of many world culinary traditions shows, almost anything can be cooked in a tagine! If desired, you can use any kind of meat or fish, seafood, vegetables and fruits. Of course, the process is quite lengthy, but the delicious taste more than covers this time investment.

In fact, tagine is an analogue of a traditional Russian pot.

Next, we'll look at another recipe that includes one of the little secrets of cooking the perfect roast. When paired with fresh tomatoes, the potatoes always remain firm, no matter how much we simmer them.

Materials

Originally, tagines were made of clay. Today, different raw materials are used for their production. To determine which one to give preference to when purchasing, you need to consider all possible options.

Clay

The first tagines were made from pure clay, without any additional impurities, just firing. The aromas of spices are absorbed into the pores and then released into the contents of the dishes. In addition, food does not cool down in it for a long time. There is no shame in setting the table with clay tagines, because these dishes look aesthetically pleasing.

These are undoubted advantages. But there are also disadvantages, which include :

1. The ingrained smell lasts a long time, so you have to soak it for a long time or spend money on purchasing several bowls separately for meat, vegetables, fish, casseroles, and cereals.

   
   Cooking in a tagine.

2. Food debris gets stuck in the pores, which can become a breeding ground for the proliferation of microorganisms. Despite prolonged high-temperature treatment, some bacteria still survive.
3. The material is not resistant to high temperatures, so it is not suitable for frying and should be kept away from open flames.
4. Unglazed clay is brittle and susceptible to scratches. Another disadvantage is the heaviness. A more hygienic option is glazed and fired clay. This tagine is easy to clean, does not require soaking, food does not stick, and juices are not eaten away.

Before first use, it is recommended to soak the clay vessel in water for a day.

Ceramics

There are no boundaries for perfection. The properties of clay are improved with the help of mineral compounds and various inorganics. The ceramics are also coated with a glaze, which does not allow odors to pass through, and fired. The main requirement is that the bottom be heavy and thick to avoid cracks when exposed to strong heat.

Ceramic tagine is best used on electric stoves. Gas stoves are more capricious - there must be metal additions at the bottom of the ceramic product.

Cast iron

Cast iron has better performance properties than ceramics. Tagines made from this material are used for cooking on a gas stove, as well as for barbecues and ovens. Such dishes can be made entirely of metal or include elements from other raw materials, for example, a clay lid.

The material is durable, fire-resistant, heavy, heat is distributed over the entire surface slowly and evenly. Therefore, chips and cracks are excluded.

Food prepared in such utensils does not need to be reheated often. Once the dish is cooked al dente, you can remove it from the heat. It will languish on its own and reach the desired condition. Thus, the food does not lose useful components, and gas and electricity consumption will also be reduced.

Helps cooks bring original ideas to life and diversify classic recipes: in a cast iron product, food can first be fried in a bowl and then left to simmer under the lid.

Tagine in Moroccan style.

Aluminum

Aluminum is a very light metal. The inside is lined with ceramics or titanium. This design allows the amazing “frying pan” to heat up slowly and evenly. The lid is usually ceramic.

Steel

The stainless steel option appeared relatively recently. The design of a steel tagine resembles a three-layer sandwich - 2 layers of steel and 1 layer of aluminum. Has a number of advantages :

1. The dishes are tender and quickly prepared thanks to steaming on a special grill.
2. Stainless steel is suitable for induction hobs.

However, according to customer reviews, nothing can compare with regular clay. Stainless steel is unable to retain heat as well as ceramics and cast iron.

Turkey with lemons

Salted lemons are an essential component of the next dish. It is customary to stock up on this ingredient in advance. By the way, in the Maghreb countries this seasoning is quite actively used in the preparation of many dishes. Local residents, and tourists too, speak with admiration of this recipe. It's time for you to get acquainted with one of these dishes - turkey with salted lemons.

The recipe can be prepared in both individual and shared tagines.

To prepare 4 servings you need to take:

• 700-800 grams of turkey fillet;
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil;
• 1 shallot;
• 2-3 cm of ginger root;
• 3 cloves of garlic;
• 3 tomatoes;
• 800-900 grams of potatoes;
• spices to taste - turmeric, paprika, cinnamon, cumin;
• half a chili pepper;
• olives - optional;
• greens for serving.

Pickling lemons:

• 5 pieces of lemons;
• 10 teaspoons salt.

Cooking turkey in tagine

Lemons are usually prepared 2-3 weeks in advance: the fruits are thoroughly washed, cut lengthwise into four parts (not completely), 1 teaspoon of salt (preferably sea salt) is added to each of the cuts, then the lemons are compacted into a sterilized jar and closed with a vacuum lid. .

Let's start cooking.

Heat vegetable oil in a tagine, fry chopped onion, grated ginger and garlic until translucent.

Then add peeled potatoes in chunks, spices and chopped turkey, add two to three tablespoons of broth or water, cover with a lid and simmer over low heat until the potatoes are ready (about 30 minutes).

Next, pour boiling water over the tomatoes and remove the skins. Chop and add to the tagine along with the juice. Take a salted lemon, cut it into small slices and also add it to the tagine with juice. The turn of olives has come - everything here is purely individual (not everyone likes this product). Salt and pepper to taste, simmer everything for about 25-30 minutes over low heat. Serve with greens.

What can you cook in a tagine?

The process of preparing food in a tagine is incredibly simple. Typically, cooking in this cookware involves loading all the ingredients, covering with a cone lid and placing it on the coals or stove for the required time. Despite its apparent primitiveness, a wide variety of dishes can be prepared in a tagine.

First of all, tagine. This is a national holiday Moroccan dish. It takes almost the whole day to prepare it, which is why it is prepared only on major holidays. For this you will need meat, about 1 kg, of any quality, you can also have hard pieces on the bone. To the meat you need to add 1 teaspoon of turmeric, the same amount of red and black pepper, several potatoes, a couple of tomatoes, onions, carrots and a little cilantro and cinnamon. The meat is cut into pieces, mixed with salt and the listed spices and marinated for an hour and a half. Then you need to heat the tagine, add oil and load the meat. In 10 minutes. the meat is turned over. Then the chopped onion rings are placed on the meat, the heat is turned to minimal and the dish is left for 1.5 hours. At this time, peel potatoes, peel tomatoes and cut carrots and peppers. Then all this is added to the tagine and after another half hour the food is ready.

If you use chicken, the dish will be cooked faster.

If desired, instead of meat, seafood can be used for cooking, for example, fish. But in this case, all the ingredients are loaded first, and seafood is added only half an hour before readiness. If kept longer, the seafood may become rubbery.

Spices can be very diverse. In addition to the spices already listed, olives, salted lemons, ginger, sesame seeds, dates, honey and much more are also used.

Tagine selection

In Maghreb countries, pottery is used, which is sometimes treated with glaze. Untreated ones must be pre-soaked overnight, otherwise cracks may form. When choosing a cookware for cooking, make sure it has a thick and heavy bottom. It is this feature that will allow you to choose a good product that guarantees repeated use without visible damage. If you need to place a ceramic tagine on a stove, the presence of a divider will be a prerequisite. And even if you use a glass-ceramic stove, turning on high heat is unacceptable!

You should also follow the rules for cooking in the oven. The ceramic tagine heats up with the oven and gradually increases heat. It is also necessary to pay attention to the following factor - there must be a small hole in the dome of the tagine, otherwise excess steam may throw off the lid during cooking. If this is not available, make a hole with a diameter of 2-3 mm from a jeweler.

Under no circumstances should you cook in decorative tagines with decorations and thin bottoms. They may contain silver or semi-precious stones that are not suitable for heating.

If you are the proud owner of exclusive ceramic tableware, save it for serving. This way you can save the decorations. The safest is a tagine with a cast iron bottom. You can even cook casseroles and homemade bread in it! By the way, let's stop at homemade bread.

Why is tagine needed?

It is curious that tagine refers to both the type of utensil and the food that is cooked in it. Moroccan tagine is a fragrant, spicy dish for which the kitchen utensil of the same name was invented.

A classic Moroccan tagine includes tender young lamb meat stewed in broth and dried fruit sauce. There are well-known recipes for chicken tagine with salted lemons and olives, duck tagine with dates and honey, fish tagine with tomatoes and cilantro, and Tunisian potato tagine, which looks like a casserole or omelet.

It so happens that the Russian people are alien to the sweet taste of main dishes and the excessive spice that Arabs and Easterners love so much. Therefore, having tried options for preparing Moroccan tagine, over four dozen recipes for dishes were born in Russia, which when cooked in this dish turn out delicious. And due to the fact that tagine was once loved by chefs in France and Italy, a dozen more European recipes have been added to ours.

In no other container does prepared food acquire the same taste properties that it receives when cooked in a tagine. Meanwhile, the secret of tagine is simple.

The fact is that the moisture evaporating from the food, when heated, condenses on the walls of the high, dome-shaped lid of the tagine, which fits tightly to the edges of the bowl. The water accumulated on the walls of the lid does not drip (as is the case with any other dish), but flows down to the edges of the bowl and creates a water seal on them. Water accumulated around the edges of the bowl is an obstacle to the aromatic and, as a result, taste properties of food.

The ingredients of a dish in a tagine, languishing in their own juice, are imbued with their own aromas and the smell of seasonings. Therefore, housewives cook rice with curry sauce, chicken or seafood, potatoes with beef or lamb, lean vegetable dishes without oil, cutlets and meatballs with gravy, and even juicy cottage cheese casseroles.

You can cook in a tagine over smoldering coals (as they do where it comes from), on the stove and in the oven. If you have a gas stove at home, use a special divider to avoid cracks in the dishes (this advice is relevant for ceramic tagines).

Bread "as before"

To prepare we take:

• half a kilo of baking flour;
• quarter 1 tsp. yeast;
• a pinch of salt;
• half a liter of water.

Let's start cooking.

Sift the flour into a deep, wide bowl, add yeast and salt, mix, add water. Mix everything until smooth. Then cover with a cloth and leave at room temperature for 12 hours. Then we form the bread piece, heat the oven to 230 degrees, carefully transfer the piece into the tagine and bake for about half an hour with the lid closed. Open the lid, lower the heat and continue baking until golden brown for another 15 minutes.

Chicken with quince according to the recipe of Stalik Khankishiev

The famous chef shared his recipe for this dish in a tagine. As mentioned earlier, sweetness in combination with a meat dish allows you to achieve an explosion of taste sensations. Perhaps, after trying the following recipe, you will forever fall in love with tagine!

As the author of the tagine dish, Stalik Khankishiev, says, the taste of the dish directly depends on the material of the dish. Therefore, instead of a regular cauldron, he prefers to use a traditional tagine.