Easy Crock Pot Moroccan Chicken, Chickpea and Apricot Tagine

Name: Easy Crock Pot Moroccan Chicken, Chickpea and Apricot Tagine
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Yield: 6 serving(s)
Ingredients: 6 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped into large chunks (or assorted chicken pieces, about 3 lbs); 14.79 ml flour or 29.58 ml cornflour; 2 large onions, chopped; 3-4 garlic cloves, chopped finely; 14.79-29.58 ml extra virgin olive oil; 1 inch fresh gingerroot, finely chopped; 170.09 g dried apricots; 29.58 ml tomato paste; 2 (793.78 g) can chopped tomatoes; 2 (793.78 g) can chickpeas; 44.37 ml honey; 236.59 ml chicken stock; 0.25 ml saffron or 4.92 ml turmeric; 19.71 ml ras el hanout spice mix (or make up spice mix below); 4.92 ml ground coriander; 4.92 ml ground cinnamon; 4.92 ml ground cumin; 4.92 ml cayenne pepper (optional); salt and black pepper; chopped fresh coriander, to serve (Cilantro); 2 carrots, peeled & diced (optional); 1 preserved lemon, chopped into small wedges (optional); harissa

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Submitted by French Tart

"This is one of my family's favourite recipes; I am constantly asked all the time to make it. I was taught it by a Moroccan friend who also lives in France - it is an old family recipe passed down for many years. It is great all year around - served with flat breads or pitta breads & assorted salads in spring & summer or served with hot fluffy & fruity couscous, assorted chutneys or pickles in the depths of winter. I make mine in a fantastic "Electric Tagine" made by Tefal; it of course works in a more traditional clay tagine - BUT the real secret is.......it works like a dream in a Slow cooker/Crock Pot. Try it out! If you cannot get Ras-el-Hanout, which is an exotic Moroccan spice mixture, including rose petals - don't worry, use the other spices I have listed instead; or I have a Ras-el-Hanout recipe posted on Recipezaar: Recipe #205185 N.B. I notice in a review that it has been suggested that Chemical Heat is needed!! The great thing about sharing recipes is that they can be adapted to personal taste. BUT, this is not supposed to be a "Hot" recipe, but a "Fragrant & Fruity" recipe!! A Tagine by definition is SLOW cooked over a LOW heat & is very fruity with subtle undertones of heat! However, life would be boring if you couldn't add a bit of "heat", but it's just not traditional. What is traditional, is to allow your guests to add their own heat, so have a bowl of "Harissa" on the table. Preserved lemons are also a wonderful and traditional addition - I have a recipe posted on Recipezaar: Recipe #209590 PLEASE NOTE: This recipe lists canned chickpeas in the ingredients, NOT dried! If you use dried chickpeas, you MUST soak them and cook them first!"

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photo by DianaEatingRichly

Ready In:: 3hrs 30mins
Ingredients:: 23
Serves:: 6

ingredients

6 large boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped into large chunks (or assorted chicken pieces, about 3 lbs)
14.79 ml flour or 29.58 ml cornflour
2 large onions, chopped
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped finely
14.79-29.58 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 inch fresh gingerroot, finely chopped
170.09 g dried apricots
29.58 ml tomato paste
2 (793.78 g) can chopped tomatoes
2 (793.78 g) can chickpeas
44.37 ml honey
236.59 ml chicken stock
0.25 ml saffron or 4.92 ml turmeric
19.71 ml ras el hanout spice mix (or make up spice mix below)
4.92 ml ground coriander
4.92 ml ground cinnamon
4.92 ml ground cumin
4.92 ml cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and black pepper
chopped fresh coriander, to serve (Cilantro)
OPTIONAL
2 carrots, peeled & diced (optional)
1 preserved lemon, chopped into small wedges (optional)
Accompaniment
harissa

directions

PLEASE NOTE: This recipe lists canned chickpeas in the ingredients, NOT dried! If you use dried chickpeas, you MUST soak them and cook them first!
Heat up olive oil in a frying pan/skillet & saute chopped onions & garlic for 5-10 minutes.
Add chicken stock & gradually mix in flour or cornflour until well mixed & not lumpy.Add honey & tomato paste & mix well.
Add herbs,spices & finely chopped ginger with salt & pepper to taste.
Finally add tinned tomatoes & mix well.
Pour the above tomato,onion & spice mix into slow cooker or tagine.
Add chicken & chickpeas & mix well.
Add dried apricots making sure they are covered by juice. (Add the carrots if using.).
Give it a gentle but good stir to mix everything together well.
Crock Pot or Slow Cooker - Cook on high for about 3 to 4 hours OR automatic with keep warm facility for up to 8 hours. (Please note that the cooking times depend on your crockpot, the cooking times I have suggested work fine with mine which is a Morphy Richards Slow Cooker.).
If cooking in a Traditional Tagine, do as above & cook SLOWLY over gas or barbeque for about 2-3 hours.
Electric Tagine cooking - same as the slowcooker. If you need to thicken it up towards the end of the cooking time, add cornflour which has been mixed with a little water & add to the tagine - mix well.
Serve with freshly chopped Coriander/Cilantro sprinked on top & either with couscous, rice, fresh flat bread, pitta bread or salads. It is also good (if not traditional) served with fluffy pureed or mashed potatoes & pasta.
Note: You can use chicken pieces or whole chicken which has been cut up into portions, but you will then need to brown them in a frying pan or skillet beforehand. Preserved lemons make a great addition, add them when you add the apricots and carrots.

Questions & Replies

And the chickpeas are drained? I am making this now so sort of winging it because these instructions are not very clear.

Marcelle C.
I'm confused...the ingredients list ras el hanout (which I already have) and says if you don't have it to make up spice below. I don't see any spice mix below and need to know if I am adding the coriander, cinnamon, cumin, and cayenne to the ras el hanout or in place of? Ras el hanout has way more than just those four spices!

Marcelle C.
What size crockpot have you used? I'm afraid my 4 qt might be too small.

lori L.
Do I add the chicken stock and everything after that to the frying pan/skillet? If so will that all fit in a regular pan, with the stock and tomatoes and everything? And how long do I cook that stuff in the pan?

Brent B.
Anyone tried doing this vegetarian? What vegetables added or what ingredients changed?

mmleb79

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Reviews

This was so good, that I paid myself twenty dollars plus a tip for this entree and asked to see the dessert menu. I do not own a crock pot so I cooked this in my oven at 275 for 2 hours then turned it up to 400 for another 30 minutes to kill any bacteria. I used the exact ingredients listed and it was plenty spicy for me.

klincko
I have had this recipe in my cookbook forever and my husband finally made it yesterday. It was absolutely amazing! We made a few mods based on our tastes and what we had on hand - we used 2lbs of cut up boneless skinless chicken thighs (browned first), one large onion, 2 tbsp flour, 1 can each of drained chickpeas and diced tomatoes, 1tbsp honey, and about 2 cups of homemade stock. We forgot the saffron but will remember the next time. The apricots were large so we tore them in half but it wasn't really necessary. Cooked on high for just under 3.5 hrs. The chicken was tender, the sauce perfect - not too runny or too thick. No extra salt needed. He served it with mixed veg couscous and the meal was simply sublime. Oh, and I just realized he forgot the cilantro! We didn't miss it though, it's great as is. Thank you for a terrific recipe, French Tart.

Dimpi
Made this last night. We enjoyed it but it wasn't 5 stars. I thought it came out a bit too soupy. Next time i will only add 1 can of diced tomatoes. Also I will cut back to 2 tablespoons for the honey. We don't like tons of heat so I cut the Cayenne back to 1/2 tsp, which could account why it was too sweet for us. Thank you for a great recipe.

Loves to travel
This is the best thing I have ever made in the slow cooker! Has helped to restore my faith that there is a way to have a tasty and nutritious meal waiting for my family after work. So many other recipes turn out bland, but not this one! I used bone in thighs, prepared the sauce mixture and precooked dried chick peas the night before. I made the Ras-El-Hanout, but upped the amount slightly as we like spicy food, some of my dried spices were a little old, and as mentioned above - we have had bad luck with bland food coming out of the slow cooker before. Nestled the chicken in the sauce mixture to marinate overnight in the fridge. Cooked for 6 hours on low and then kept it warm until we were ready to eat. Yum!

tracy-t
This wonderful dish is good anytime of the year. I made the tagine on the stove top and slowly simmered it for three hours. I was afraid the boneless/skinless chicken breasts would be dried out but they were moist and so tender I could cut it with my spoon. Served with plain couscous. Thanks for another great recipe.

plutodrive

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Tweaks

Cooked this with Instant Pot pressure cooker under manual HP 15mins mode. for pressure cooker would recommend chicken thigh instead of breast. Put only 2 tbsp of honey and that gave it a nice sweet flavour. I omitted the apricot as there seem to have alot of food. I used both and the chicken breast was quite dry while the thigh was nice and moist. If you like heat like we do, definitely add 1tsp of hot chilli powder, which I did and this dish was great! Definitely a keeper.

pollyw
After making this the first time, I put only a tablespoon of honey the 2nd time around and it was much better Dried apricots are quite sweet when cooked so I felt the honey made it too sweet

Ellie A.
Served to family members (some that i was going out on limb serving an international dish) and they all loved it. Don't forget to lightly brown the chicken before putting in the crock pot (seasoned with mit mita), not too much...High setting for about 2 hrs and low for about 3 hrs with boneless skinless chicken thighs and it was still moist. I keep everything in the recipe except 1,1/2 cans of chickpeas. Added a little ketchup, a little extra tumeric, chopped the apricots, 2 carrots, 1 bell pepper, and 1 sweet potato made for a really nice balance of flavors, was worried about a strong apricot flavor and was not the case at all, in fact could have added a few more apricots, also added 2 dried lemons instead of preserved lemon, served with cous cous and naan. used canned garbanzo beans and they were soft for me. Very very good...curry/stew/chili feel but at whole different level. Thanks for this recipe.

nathan.morgan
Delicious

Mil M.
I added about 1/2 cup dry red wine. Also did this on the stove -cooked 2hrs. It was a huge hit!

rrbam

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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

French Tart

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