Moroccan Crock Pot Tajine

Baton Twirling's Note:

In Morocco, tajines or stews are made in a shallow earthenware cooking pots called tajines. In this version, use a crock pot to produce a mellow yet intensely flavoured meat and vegetable melange with a tender texture and enticing aroma. First published in Chatelaine's 10/2000 issue.

• Total Time: 5 hrs 25 mins
• Prep Time: 25 mins
• Cook Time: 5 hrs

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 (3 lb) packagefrozen stewing lamb or 1 (3 lb) package lamb shoulder or 1 (3 lb) package stew beef chunks or 8 skinless chicken thighs , bone-in
• 4 garlic cloves
• 2 onions
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon allspice
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon hot red chili pepper flakes or ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 cups small chunks carrots
• 3 cups large chunks of peeled squash or 3 cups potatoes
• 1 (10 ounce) can condensed chicken broth or 1 cup chicken bouillon
• ½ cup pitted green olives (optional)
• 1 (19 ounce) can chickpeas , drained and rinsed (optional)

Directions:

1. Thaw lamb.
2. Trim excess fat from lamb or beef, then cut into large bite-size pieces.
3. If using chicken thighs, leave whole.
4. Mince garlic and thinly slice onions.
5. In a crock pot or other slow cooker, stir garlic with onions, cumin, paprika, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, salt, chili flakes, carrots, squash, broth and olives, if using.
6. Add meat.
7. Cover and cook on high heat for 5 hours or on low for 9 to 10 hours.
8. Stir in chickpeas, if using, during last 15 minutes of cooking.
9. Serve over couscous or with crusty bread.
10. Covered and refrigerated, tajine will keep for at least 2 days and can be frozen in an airtight container or resealable freezer bag.

Reviews

[Chef Tweaker]

I liked this a lot. Hubby hated it but he hates anything with cumin in it so I didn't let that affect the rating. I made it with 8 chicken thighs and portioned it into 4 huge servings. It was only 300 very filling calories. I followed the rest of the ingredients exact including using pumpkin for the squash. I got started too late so I cooked it on the stovetop. I removed the lid in the last 30 min of cooking because it was still too soupy for my liking. I used the pepper flakes and the spice was almost too much for us. Maybe I will use 1/4 tsp in the future.

[Um Safia]

I cooked this for dinner today as part of the GREAT TAGINE TREASURE HUNT & am very happy I did! It is delicious. I followed the recipe but added a bit of chopped fresh coriander / cilantro at the end. I don't have a crock pot so I cooked it in my LE Creuset dutch oven/ casserole for just short of 3 hours & it was perfect. We ate it with steamed raisin cous cous. Thanks B.T for the great recipe!

[Shelly K]

Very good recipe! We couldn't afford 3 lbs of lamb so we used a 1 lb lamb neck. Just enough to flavor, but not enough to break the bank. I feel a little silly for eating this during the summer! It's definitely a winter meal!