This is a very flexible, tasty recipe that uses up any veg. If you are a meat eater you could add diced chicken or lamb with the spices and veg and this would be a good recipe to stretch your meat. But it is perfectly satisfying as a vegetarian dish as you get protein from the chickpeas. Besides the veg listed below you could also add thinly sliced cabbage or celery, peas, mushrooms, broccoli/cauliflower florets, green beans or diced potato.
The traditional Moroccan spice called ‘ras el hanout’ is a mixture of cardamom, cumin, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, allspice, ginger, chilli, coriander seed, peppercorn, sweet and hot paprika, fenugreek, and turmeric – so just use as many of those as you have, or Harissa powder mix also works.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 large carrot, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 1 courgette/aubergine, chopped
- 1 medium sweet potato/half a butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- 1 can (400g) chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 can (400g) chopped tomatoes
- 1/2 cup dried apricots/prunes, roughly chopped (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon each ground cinnamon, cumin, ginger, paprika, chilli
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock
Steps
1.Saute onion in oil until golden. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 more minute.
2. Add spices and all the chopped up veg. Stir well and cook for 10 minutes.
3. Add tinned tomatoes and chickpeas.
4. Add vegetable stock and stir. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, then cover and reduce the heat to low. Let the tagine simmer for 35-45 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking.
5. While tagine is cooking, cook your rice or couscous (follow packet instructions).
6. When tagine is thoroughly cooked, serve with rice, couscous or flat breads. You can also add a dollop of yoghurt and a squeeze of lemon.
Adapted from:jamieolivereats.co.uk/veggie-tagine/
