CHICKEN CASABLANCA
1 jumbo yam, peeled and cut into large chunks2 large carrots, peeled & thick-sliced
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, or equivalent dried
1 15oz can chick peas, drained & rinsed
2 pounds skinless chicken thighs, boneless or bone-in
Place above ingredients into crock pot.
Mix the following together in a small bowl.
1 1/2 t salt
1 t black pepper
1 t cumin
1 t turmeric
1/2 t cinnamon
1/8 t cayenne
Sprinkle spices over crock pot contents and toss. Add:
1 14oz can diced tomatoes, or a few diced fresh tomatoes
Stir again and cook on high for 4-5 hours, or longer on low (preferred) until yams are tender and sauce has thickened.
Large green olives, stuffed or marinated, are a good garnish for any North African dish. Chicken tagines (basically stews) in Morocco often include olives and preserved lemons - available in specialty stores, or you can make your own if you fall in love with Moroccan cooking. Earlier, I mentioned serving this with couscous; you could make extra of the spice mix above and use it to season the coucous, but try using whole peppercorns instead of the black and red ground pepper.
A lovely finish to this meal would be dates and fresh fruit or simply a delicious cup of mint tea.
Interestingly, Moroccan cooking can be so 'good' it literally blows your mind - some of their desserts and spice mixtures contain ingredients such as hashish, cannabis and spanish fly! Like Indian cooks and their curry blends, Moroccan cooks all have their own version of the traditional spice blend known as 'ras el hanout'. A basic version still contains a few more ingredients than the blend above, but you can certainly substitute it for the spices (other than salt) in the recipe above to achieve a more authentic flavor. See the blend explained here. Have fun with it!
From the blog author: This dish was good after cooking on high for four hours. But then I accidentally left it on the 'keep warm' setting with the lid off for something like 6 hrs. At 2:00 this morning, it was AMAZING! what a difference. So cook it as long as you can, on low, or start it on high then turn it down to let it 'stew' even longer. Or if you're the organized, planning type, make it the day before and reheat it in the crock pot.
ReplyDeleteFrom the blod author: another thought - frozen peas could be added the last hour - also, I've noticed that some canned chick peas are softer than others, so if yours are soft, it's better to add them later, too. Save a bit of fresh cilantro to garnish it with.
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