Chicken & Butternut Squash Tagine

Name: Chicken & Butternut Squash Tagine
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 serving(s)
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 2 cups chopped onions; 2 garlic cloves, minced; 2 teaspoons ground cumin; 1 teaspoon paprika; 1 teaspoon ground turmeric; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger; 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces; 8 ounces about 2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash; 1/3 cup halved potted black oil-cured olives; 2/3 cup pitted prunes, chopped; 1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves (optional); 1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley (optional)

Submitted by ElizabethKnicely

"This delicious recipe is really fast to put together, especially if your local store sells cut pre-cut butternut squash, it can easily be adapted for vegetarians by using cooked or canned chickpeas instead of the chicken."

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photo by Karen Elizabeth

Ready In:: 40mins
Ingredients:: 15
Serves:: 4

ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
¹⁄₄ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₄ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¹⁄₄ teaspoon ground ginger
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
8 ounces about 2 cups peeled and cubed butternut squash
¹⁄₃ cup halved potted black oil-cured olives
²⁄₃ cup pitted prunes, chopped
¹⁄₂ cup fresh cilantro leaves (optional)
¹⁄₂ cup fresh flat leaf parsley (optional)

directions

Heat oil in a dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion; cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, for about 8 minutes. Raise the heat to medium high and stir in the garlic. Cook until it becomes fragrant, for about 1 minute.
Stir the cumin and the other spices into the onions. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add the chicken pieces and coat with the spices.
Add 1 cup of water, and stir well to remove spices from the bottom of the pan. Add squash, olives, and prunes; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 10-15 minutes or until squash is tender. Taste for salt. Garnish with cilantro and parsley. Serve with Basic Couscous.
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, November 2009.

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Reviews

Great inspiration for my tagine, thanks! I made a few tweaks, which I’ve already posted but this gave me a great basis to work from, thank you!

Carolyn L.
Ooh, loved this, much easier than it might initially look! Other than leaving out prunes (just didn't fancy them!! sorry!), I made this as directed, the olives are a lovely touch, this is a very satisfying dish and so easily prepared. Even better next day ;) As suggested, served with couscous, excellent choice with this recipe. Yum, loved it, thank you Elizabeth, made for PRMR tag game

Karen Elizabeth

Tweaks

Great inspiration for my tagine, thanks! I made a few tweaks - marinated the chicken in the garlic, turmeric, some grated ginger and 1 freshly squeezed lemon, added 1 chilli and a pinch of saffron, used 450ml chicken stock and added a chopped yellow pepper instead of the prunes (which would make it too sweet for our taste). I also simmered it in the tagine for about 45 minutes total, which made the chicken really tender (I tried it after 30 mins and you could taste the difference in comparison!) It was delicious - definitely one I’ll be adding to my repertoire!

Carolyn L.