Sunday, July 6, 2008

What to do with Preserved Lemons.

Tagine of Chicken with Preserved Lemon and Olives

3 Tb. extra virgin olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp crushed saffron threads
1/4 - 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 chicken, cut into 6-8 pcs.
salt and black pepper
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 Tb chopped coriander (cilantro)
2 Tb chopped flat-leaf parsley
peel of 1 large or 2 small preserved lemons
12-16 green or violet olives

In a wide casserole or heavy-bottomed pan that can hold all the chicken in one layer, heat oil and put in onions. Saute, stirring over low heat, until they soften. then stir in the garlic, saffron and ginger.

Put in chicken pieces, season w/ salt and pepper, and pour in about 1 1/4 cups water. Simmer, covered, turning the pieces over a few times and adding a little more water if it gets too dry. Lift out breasts (of chicken, unless you like a little exhibitionism with possibly splashy cooking) after about 15 minutes, and put them aside. Continue to cook the rest another 25 minutes or so, and then put the breasts back.

Stir into the sauce the lemon juice, the chopped coriander and parsley, the preserved lemon peel cut into quarters or strips, and the olives. Simmer uncovered for 5-10 minutes, until the reduced sauce is thick and unctuous. (yep, it says unctuous in the cookbook!) If there's too much liquid, lift out the chicken pieces and set aside while you reduce the sauce further, then return the chicken to the pan and heat through.

Present it all on a plate. The end.

This recipe is from Claudia Roden's "Arabesque: A Taste of Morocco, Turkey & Lebanon". It rocks.