Moroccan Chicken Tagine
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Chicken tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish of chicken pieces braised with spices, garlic, onion, olives, and preserved lemons. It’s company-worthy yet easy to throw together.
Chicken tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish of chicken braised with spices, garlic, onion, olives, and preserved lemons. It’s a company-worthy dish yet easy enough to throw together on a not-too-busy weeknight. The word tagine refers to the shallow clay vessel with a cone-shaped lid in which the dish is traditionally cooked, but you don’t need one to make it. I use a large cast-iron braiser; a wide Dutch oven or heavy covered skillet will work, too. This recipe, tweaked a bit from Cook’s Illustrated, does not call for preserved lemons, a specialty ingredient that can be difficult to find. Instead, lemon zest and fresh lemon juice add tart brightness to the dish. Serve the chicken on a platter or individual plates over a bed of couscous.
What you’ll need To Make Chicken Tagine
While you can use a whole cut-up chicken for chicken tagine, my preference is to use bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs only, similar to my coq au vin recipe. The thighs provide a good amount of meat and remain tender even if slightly overcooked, and the bones and skin add depth of flavor and richness to the sauce (though the skin is removed midway through cooking). Sometimes, I pull the meat off the bone before serving — makes it easier and more appealing for the kids to eat — but serving the chicken on the bone is traditional.
How To Make Chicken Tagine
To begin, combine the spices in small bowl.
Mix well and set aside.
Zest the lemon. Combine 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest with 1 minced garlic clove; set aside.
Season both sides of chicken pieces with 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown the chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes.
Using tongs, flip the chicken pieces over and brown the other side, about 4 minutes more. 
Transfer the chicken to a large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard.
Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan, reduce the heat to medium, and add the onion.
Cook, stirring occasionally, until they have browned at the edges but still retain their shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add a few tablespoons of water if the pan gets too dark).
Add the remaining minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the spices and flour.
Cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in the broth, honey, remaining lemon zest, and 1/4 teaspoon salt, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits.
Add the chicken (with any accumulated juices) back in, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Scatter the carrots around the chicken, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender-crisp, about 10 minutes more.
Add the olives, garlic-zest mixture, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice.
Stir to combine and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired.
Serve with couscous.
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Moroccan Chicken Tagine
Chicken tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish of chicken pieces braised with spices, garlic, onion, olives, and preserved lemons. It’s company-worthy yet easy to throw together.
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 lemon
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (about 4 pounds), trimmed of excess skin and fat (see note)
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion, halved and cut into ¼-in-thick slices
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1¾ cups chicken broth
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 large or 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into ½-inch-thick coins
- ½ cup Greek cracked green olives, pitted and halved (see note)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Instructions
- Combine the spices in a small bowl and set aside. Zest the lemon. Combine 1 teaspoon of the lemon zest with 1 minced garlic clove; set aside.
- Season both sides of chicken pieces with 2 teaspoons salt and ½ teaspoon pepper. Heat the oil in a large heavy-bottomed Dutch oven or pan over medium-high heat until beginning to smoke. Brown the chicken pieces skin side down in single layer until deep golden, about 5 minutes; using tongs, flip the chicken pieces over and brown the other side, about 4 minutes more. Transfer the chicken to a large plate; when cool enough to handle, peel off the skin and discard. Pour off and discard all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan.
- Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until they have browned at the edges but still retain their shape, 5 to 7 minutes (add a few tablespoons of water now and then if the pan gets too dark). Add the remaining minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the spices and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the broth, honey, remaining lemon zest, and ¼ teaspoon salt, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen any browned bits. Add the chicken (with any accumulated juices) back in, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the carrots, cover, and simmer until the chicken is cooked through and the carrots are tender-crisp, about 10 minutes more.
- Stir in the olives, reserved lemon zest-garlic mixture, cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice; taste the sauce and adjust seasoning with salt, pepper, and more lemon juice, if desired. Serve with couscous.
- Note: Don't fret too much over trimming the chicken thighs. The skin gets removed midway through the cooking process and most of the fat will cook off and get drained. I usually just take kitchen shears and quickly snip off any excess skin or fat. Cracked green olives are olives that have been ‘cracked’ or split open before curing, allowing the brine or marinade to penetrate. You can find them in your supermarket’s olive bar, or substitute any green olive that you like.
- Make-Ahead: After you have completed the step of cooking the carrots, the dish can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. To serve, gently warm on the stove until the chicken is heated through, then proceed to the step where the olives and remaining ingredients are added.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 1 chicken thigh
- Calories: 367
- Fat: 13 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 14 g
- Sugar: 7 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 47 g
- Sodium: 794 mg
- Cholesterol: 215 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I did modify the recipe somewhat so I’m hesitant to review. I’m not a big olive fan so I substituted dates and halved the honey to make up for the sweetness. I also added pistachios for texture. Second time I made it I used harissa instead of paprika.
It says to add the remaining lemon zest in twice. I’m a bit confused here
Hi Sue, when you zest the lemon, you combine 1 teaspoon of the zest with one of the minced garlic. The first time you are instructed to add lemon zest, that’s the remaining zest that hasn’t been combined with the garlic. The second time you add the zest, that will be the zest-garlic mixture. Hope that clarifies and that you enjoy!
My husband made this dish for us for our anniversary. He followed the recipe but also added harissa seasoning to the spice mix. This dish was out of this world delicious! Highly recommend this recipe.
Question: could I substitute cornstarch (or something else) for the flour, in order to make it gluten-free?
Hi Gail, You can use gluten-free flour. If you’d like to use cornstarch, I’d wait until you’re further along in the recipe — combine 2 tablespoons cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water; mix until completely smooth. After adding the carrots, whisk half of the slurry/mixture into the liquid and simmer per the recipe instructions. Hope that helps and that you enjoy!
I followed this recipe exactly as written except for the chicken. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs. Like all of Jenn’s recipes, this one was excellent. Many thanks Jenn.
Hello. If I was able to find preserved lemons do you have an idea for how I would substitute them i.e. amount of them vs. the regular lemons?
Hi Shelley, I’d omit the lemon zest and juice, and use the thinly sliced rind of one preserved lemon. Please LMK how it turns out!
Absolutely amazing. Added a tin of chickpeas and a bag of dried dates instead of honey. So good!
I made this tonight and my husband was extremely dubious…but loved it! He liked the way the olives balanced out the sweetness of the sauce. I pretty much stuck with the recipe except that I wanted to use my brand-new Instant Pot Duo Air Fryer, so I “fried” the bone-in, skin-on chicken in there while the sauce was cooking in my skillet. I left the skin on and used Kalamata olives because that’s what I had on hand. Thank you for this delicious recipe!
I am curious – in the third to last picture you are adding the final ingredients and at that point presumably the chicken is cooked and ready to serve – how do you therefore finish so that the chicken looks like it does in the final picture? Want to cook this for a dinner party.
Hi Claire, I think the difference in color that you’re seeing between the previous picture and the final one is that I’ve spooned some sauce over the top of the chicken in the last pic and it adds a bit more color. Hope that clarifies!
Great recipe. The lemon zest was a great addition. My new “go-to” chicken recipe!
Delicious! I added dried apricots while cooking and I sprinkled some slivered almonds before serving. I served with couscous and grilled vegetables (eggplant, zucchini, butternut squash, onion) sprinkled with tajine spices and olive oil drizzled on too. Great recipe!
Curious to know why you would sear the chicken skin only to immediately remove it, unless you’re just trying to get your hands on the rendered chicken fat….?
Yep that’s the reason 🙂
After all the 5 star reviews I was so disappointed to find this just so so. Not bad, chicken was tender and carrots tasty but not WOW. Made per recipe except for cilantro. I have loved so many other of Jen’s recipes I know I’ll keep using this site. This one just won’t go in my book.
I tried this recipe last night and it was amazing. I did my own thing but the end product was absolutely delicious!
Scrumptious recipe to say the least! Exactly as what I remember when I went to Morocco. Amazing!!!
Outstanding! Yes there are a lot of steps and you have to pay attention closely to the recipe, but the outcome is so worth it! Served with rice pilaf…excellent tender juicy chicken with super tasty sauce and delicious carrots! My kids had seconds! Highly recommend!!!
OMG, you have to try this dish. I made it when I was having guest over and it was compliments all around. I prepared the chicken the day before the diner and omitted the last addition of ingredients until the last minute. I cannot say how it compares to other chicken tangine recipes as this was my first time tasting such a dish but it was incredible…no exaggeration.
Made the Moroccan chicken tangine for my wife’s book club, tying into the reviewed book based in Morocco. Huge hit with the ladies. The flavor profile is so savory. I followed with your flourless chocolate cake for dessert, equally well received. Got to turn them on to your web site for all the recipe requests. Thanks for making me look like a rockstar. Chuck K 😘
Absolutely delicious. We just used boneless skinless chicken breasts, skipped the olives (because we don’t like them), and diced the onion vs. cutting them in strips. Served over brown rice since we didn’t have couscous. Yummy!
Hi I was wondering if you could use boneless skinless chicken thighs for this recipe?
Hi Amy, if that’s what you have on hand, they will work. You’ll just need to cut back the cooking time a bit. Hope you enjoy!
Wow – just wow. Very flavourful. Served it with couscous and a fig/cheese/greens salad. A perfect candlelight dinner. Thank you!
Just lovely!
This recipe is deliciously flavorful, and relatively quick and easy! I used low sodium chicken broth and omitted the olives, and it turned out perfectly. I think golden raisins would be a great addition to try next time I make this. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Is it possible to use chicken breast instead? I am not a fan of thighs in any fashion.
Hi Jackie, Although I think this is more moist with thighs, you can use bone-in chicken breasts (cut the breasts in half before cooking). When you add the chicken back to the pan, reduce the cooking time by about 5 minutes. Please LMK how it turns out with breasts!
How do you cut the breasts with bones in half?
Hi Jane, If you have a cleaver, that would work well; if not a chef’s knife will do the trick. Cut thru skin and flesh of the breast. When you feel the bone, place your second hand on top of the knife and apply pressure, rocking it back and forth until you cut all the way through the bone. Hope that helps!
Made this for our first dinner party in 18 months. It was lovely and the guests raved about the flavors. Paired with a dry red wine which was perfect. I will definitely make again.
Hi Jenn: I’m so excited to make your recipe as I just bought a Emile Harris Tangine pot. When I was looking for recipes, I was just about to go on your website, and this recipe popped up. Your recipe looks beautiful, and I’m sure it will be delicious.
Hope you enjoy it!
This is a wonderful recipe! I have made it 4 times already and it is a real crowd pleaser! I remember making a dish like this in culinary school. This recipe is easier and it is just as delicious! Once those herbs hit the hot oil, within seconds the aroma fills the room. A couple of things here—I didn’t have any couscous in the house so I made brown jasmine rice in my rice cooker. Brown rice has some fiber in it so it’s a slow burning carb for those interested in fiber. Also I used rainbow carrots because it’s what I had on hand. It tastes the same but adds some color to the dish. Many times chicken tagine dishes have dried apricots or raisins. This recipe doesn’t use this but I had a handful of dried cranberries on hand and I threw them in toward the end. It added a little sweetness and tartness. Like Julia and Ina I do not like cilantro—it is the Ivory soap thing so I used some flat leaf parsley that I minced instead. This is great!
Wow C ‘est magnifique! My moroccan friends love it! This is a wonderful tagine recipe.
Our favorite, local Indian restaurant closed during this past year. We were very sad until a year later when we discovered this beauty. It is better than the restaurant we were missing.
When I made this, I added a can of chickpeas and some fresh tomatoes that I needed to use up. Nice amount of heat, but I think I would increase all the spices as it was yummy but we felt it could use just a bit more. I substituted capers for the olives. I wasn’t sure if I should substitute equal amounts because I thought 1/2 cup of capers might be too much? I only added 1 tbsp. Definitely will increase those for next time too. Overall an excellent dish!
Really enjoyed this. We sliced the lemon thinly and used the whole thing. Husband said even the lemon peels tasted great and he usually doesn’t like lemon. Well done! Thank you. Was excited about the green olives, but in the end, they didn’t quite fit well so will leave out next time. Maybe the kind we used.
I made this exactly as written and it was delicious! The chicken was very tender and flavorful. My only issue was that there were so many steps so it took a long time. Also it made a greasy mess of my kitchen, but that tends to happen whenever I cook meat on the stove top. The hubby loved it too!
Made it for supper and it was absolutely delicious! So flavourful. Thank you so much for the recipe.
We made this with preserved lemons and omitted the honey since we’ve already been eating lots of dessert–it was absolutely delicious!! There was still a gentle sweetness from the onion and the carrot, and the olives completely mellowed out to our surprise. My husband, however, was most surprised by everything actually taking about an hour to make from start to finish as written in the recipe–that’s usually not the case!
Hi Jennifer, I am planning on making this dish next week. Unfortunately, my husband doesn’t like olives. Can I omit them? Will that change the flavour too much? Or should I substitute capers instead? If so, how much?
I always love your recipes and I’m looking forward to trying this. Oh sorry, one more question, do you think this could be done in an Instant Pot? Or would a crock pot be better? Just looking for alternative cooking methods as well. I do have a Dutch Oven I can do it in if all else fails. Thanks in advance!
Hi Judy, it’s perfectly fine for you to omit the olives or substitute capers for them. And based on what needs to be done on the stovetop, I don’t think it would make a lot of sense for this to be cooked in a crockpot. I don’t have enough experience with an Instant Pot to say how this would translate, but a Dutch oven would work perfectly. Hope you enjoy!
Lovely! Warm and complex flavors but easy to put together. Preserved lemons were a nice touch. We like carrots so we threw in more of those. YUM
Looking for what spices to use?! Did not see what they are.
Hi, It sounds like you are just looking at the portion of the page that has the pictures with some instructions underneath. If you scroll down a bit to under the pictures, you’ll find the full recipe. Alternatively, at the very top of the page, under the recipe name, you’ll see an orange/red button that says Jump to Recipe – if you click on that, it will take you directly to the recipe. Hope that clarifies!
Brilliant recipe. Added some dried apricots. A handful of cherry tomatoes and half a cup of peppers in last 10 mins . The seasoning and sauce is fantastic. Took the skin off chicken – exactly followed recipe and will make it again. Serving with pearl couscous and rocket pumpkin feta and salad with seeds.
Such a fantastic recipe! Fun to make and not complicated. I’ve made the original recipe first. The 2nd time, I added eggplant and cauliflower. Over couscous is definitely a preferred addition in our house
Bon appetit
It seems to me that it would taste better if I left the skin on the chicken. What is the reasoning for removing it?
Hi Dana, I find the skin gets a bit soggy after cooking and so I prefer to pull it off. Feel free to leave it on if you want. Enjoy!
I agree, Dana. I just tried this recipe and it seemed a shame to remove the skin before finishing the cooking. If I try this recipe again I will keep the skin on, then remove it at the very end (because I don’t like squishy skin).
I would also use ras el hanout instead of this spice mixture and preserved lemon.
The Dish is very good great warm flavors, like the pepper it added just the right amount of warmth. Recipe needs to be read a few times to get the set aside ingredients and main. Otherwise will definitely make this again, it is wonderful.
Hi Jenn:
Can I make this a week ahead and freeze it? If so, would you reheat it in the oven? 350 degrees? Thaw first? So many questions. I thank you.
Mary Munson
Hi Mary, You can definitely freeze this and reheat it in the oven. I’d thaw it first then reheat it in a 350-degree oven until heated through. (Add a little chicken broth or water to thin the sauce, if necessary.) Enjoy!
Many thanks Jen!
I have preserved lemons that I’d like to use in this recipe – I assume that I could use them in place of the lemon zest. How many preserved lemons would be appropriate, and shall I slice them thin? This is my first time using this product and I need a bit of help knowing how to incorporate it! Thanks in advance!
Hi Terri, I’d omit the lemon zest and juice, and use the thinly sliced rind of one preserved lemon. Please LMK how it turns out!
I made this last night and it was delicious! Super easy recipe to follow and fairly simple. Will definitely make again.
I cooked this last night and it was fantastic. I used red/green/yellow fresh peppers (instead of carrots) with the onion and cooked it on low for about 30 mins then added the chicken etc. Absolutely gorgeous. A definite keeper!
Amazing taste and easy to put together. Thanks so much!
This is about as far removed from a Moroccan Tagine as a McDonalds….
Would you mind elaborating on your comment? I am looking for an authentic Moroccan tagine recipe. What is missing from this recipe?
Thanks!
We made this for dinner on 06.07.2021. It was very easy to make. Preparation is the key to success. We’re adding this to our rotation.
Where’s the apricots and dates? Beldi lemons?
This is an amazing chicken tagine. Although I have not been to Morocco I have travelled in Spain where I have enjoyed Moroccan food. This is as good as the tagine my husband and I remember from an exotic Moroccan restaurant there. The spice mix is perfect. No one flavour stands out from the rest in an “in your face” kind of way. My only changes were to substitute boneless breast (preference) cut into pieces approximately the size of a chicken thigh, and because of personal preference, omitted the cilantro. Something green added would be wonderful for presentation but we don’t enjoy the cilantro taste. Five stars!
Delicious recipe! I took your suggestion and served it with couscous and green beans. Even my children enjoyed this meal. Its a winner in this household! Thank you for sharing.
I love this recipe and cook it about every two weeks.
I do add to it some dry apricots and it adds some more fruity flavor.
Thank you so much!
I cooked this today. Looks delicious, cleaned the pot with a piece of bread it tasted great. Will make it again.
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe.