It's no secret to y'all that I love the warm, exotic flavors of the whole Spice Trade Route that historically connected the East to the West. This is the route that connected the Arab world with the North African people, the Indian subcontinent and parts of Asia. The tagine is named for the earthenware pot (of the same name) in which it is cooked, and has been served traditionally in Morocco and Middle Eastern countries since at least the ninth century. The traditional tagine is painted or glazed pottery consisting of two parts: a circular base unit that is flat with low sides and a large cone- or dome-shaped cover that sits on the base during cooking. The cover is designed to return moisture via condensation to the bottom. This would have been useful in areas with very limited water supplies since the process returns water to the dish and thus requires minimal added water. Users can facilitate this process by adding cold water into the little well at the top of the lid. The tagine stew is meant to be slow braised, a process that can be somewhat mimicked in a slow cooker.
The savory stew of the tagine is a flavor explosion of sweet and sour with a flavor profile similar to that of many Indian foods. Although the dish can be made vegetarian, slow braised pieces of meat protein are typically used, with added vegetables and often dried fruit. Common spice additions include ginger, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon and saffron. In addition, paprika and chili are often used in vegetable tagines. The meal is usually served with bread or over couscous, but you may enjoy it over rice.
#glutenfree #dairyfree #cleaneating #beef #african #moroccan #tagine #sugarfree #soyfree #healthy Options included for #whole30 #paleo #InstantPot #slowcooker
Ingredients: (4-6 servings)
- 1 - 1.5 pounds beef chuck steak, cut into cubes
- use grass fed beef for #whole30 or #paleo
- lamb would be perfect in this recipe as well
- Kosher salt to taste
- Black pepper to taste
- 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 1 lg onion, sliced
- 1-2 Tbsp garlic paste
- 1-2 Tbsp ginger paste
- 2 tsp coriander
- 1/2 tsp cayenne
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp cardamom
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1 cup stewed tomatoes
- 1 cup chickpeas, drained
- omit for #paleo or #whole30
- 1 medium sized sweet potato
- could also use butternut squash
- 2 cups chicken stock
- use homemade for #whole30 or #paleo
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Note - it is customary to add some dried fruit such as dried apricots or raisins to the tagine. I found that the sweet potatoes were sweet enough. But if you choose butternut squash, I would add in about 1/2 cup or so of dried apricots.
Step-by-Step:
Cut chuck steak into cubes (maybe a little bigger than bite sized. They will shrink.) and season well with kosher salt and black pepper.
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| 1 - 1.5 pounds beef or lamb stew meat |
Add olive oil to heavy skillet (preferably not nonstick) and add beef to hot oil. Perhaps consider doing this in two batches. If you add too many, they won't sear as well. You can see that I have overcrowded my pan because I was feeling lazy. 😒
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| about 1 Tbsp EVOO |
Remove seared beef cubes from pan with slotted spoon or spatula. Note: They are NOT cooked through yet, just seared on the outside. We will finish cooking them in the oven.
To the same pan, add sliced onions. You may need to add a little more oil. Maybe not. You judge. Turn down the heat and cook until they are nice and golden and soft. This might take a while.
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| 1 medium sized onion, sliced |
To the cooked onions, add in the garlic and ginger. I have used a paste (in the tube) because I find it SO convenient and a big time saver in prepping. You may use finely minced fresh garlic and ginger if you'd prefer. Let them cook about a minute or so. Just enough time to start getting your seasonings together.
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| 1-2 Tbsp garlic paste |
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| 1-2 Tbsp ginger paste |
You may find it best to turn down your heat to low/simmer as you don't want the onions, garlic etc to burn while you are adding seasonings. Add all seasonings to the onion mixture.
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2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin |
Stir ingredients and then add stewed tomatoes, drained chickpeas and cubed sweet potato.
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| 1 cup stewed tomatoes |
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| 1 cup drained chickpeas |
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| 1 sweet potato, cubed |
To your tagine (or slow cooker) (or Dutch oven), add the beef, vegetable mixture and chicken stock. We need this to be really soupy right now because we will braise it for a few hours.
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| 2 cups chicken stock |
Stir to combine, cover and braise the stew at 350F for about 3.5 hours.
After a few hours, the meat and veggies should be tender and the stew should be a nice consistency. Notice how the level of liquid has dropped as the sauce has reduced.
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| handful of chopped cilantro |
To finish, add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro to brighten everything.
Serve over rice, couscous, quinoa, farro, etc. Or it would also be great if you just serve it in a bowl with some hot toasty naan.
INSTANT POT - (will need additional tomato paste, and less stock)
Step 1. Heat olive oil in your pressure cooker. Brown meat for a few minutes, in batches if necessary. Set aside.
Step 2. Deglaze the pot with a bit of stock or water to loosen the fond (browned bits) from the bottom of the pot. Add the sliced onion and cook for five minutes, stirring, until softened.
Step 3. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and stir to release the aromas.
Step 4. Return the meat to the pot and stir to combine. Add chickpeas, tomatoes and stock. Stir to combine.
Step 5. Add the stewed tomatoes, chickpeas and hot stock. (Reduce amount of stock to 1 cup. Add in some tomato paste as a thickener.)
Step 6. Cover, set vent to sealing and cook for 30 minutes minutes at high pressure. Allow for 10 minutes natural pressure release then manually release the remaining steam.
Step 7. Taste and season if necessary. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with couscous or rice.
SLOW COOKER - (will need 2 cups stock and some tomato paste)
Step 1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven. Cook the onions, stirring, for about five minutes until softened.
Step 2. Add the garlic, ginger and spices and stir.
Step 3. Add the meat to the pot and stir to combine, cooking for 5 minutes.
Step 4. Stir in tomato paste.
Step 5. Put ingredients in the slow cooker. Stir in stewed tomatoes, chickpeas and stock.
Step 6. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for about 6 hours.
Step 7. Taste and season if necessary. Garnish with chopped cilantro. Serve with couscous or rice.
TAGINE or DUTCH OVEN -
Step 1. Cut chuck steak into cubes (maybe a little bigger than bite sized. They will shrink.) and season well with kosher salt and black pepper.
Step 2. Add olive oil to heavy skillet (preferably not nonstick) and add beef to hot oil. Perhaps consider doing this in two batches. If you add too many, they won't sear as well.
Step 3. Remove seared beef cubes from pan with slotted spoon or spatula. Note: They are NOT cooked through yet, just seared on the outside. We will finish cooking them in the oven.
Step 4. To the same pan, add sliced onions. You may need to add a little more oil. Maybe not. You judge. Turn down the heat and cook until they are nice and golden and soft. This might take a while.
To the cooked onions, add in the garlic and ginger. I have used a paste (in the tube) because I find it SO convenient and a big time saver in prepping. You may use finely minced fresh garlic and ginger if you'd prefer. Let them cook about a minute or so. Just enough time to start getting your seasonings together.
Step 5. You may find it best to turn down your heat to low/simmer as you don't want the onions, garlic etc to burn while you are adding seasonings. Add all seasonings to the onion mixture.
Step 6. Stir ingredients and then add stewed tomatoes, drained chickpeas and cubed sweet potato.
Step 7. To your tagine (or slow cooker) (or Dutch oven), add the beef, vegetable mixture and chicken stock. We need this to be really soupy right now because we will braise it for a few hours. Stir to combine, cover and braise the stew at 350F for about 3.5 hours. After a few hours, the meat and veggies should be tender and the stew should be a nice consistency.
Step 8. To finish, add a handful of chopped fresh cilantro to brighten everything. Serve over rice, couscous, quinoa, farro, etc. Or it would also be great if you just serve it in a bowl with some hot toasty naan.
Bonus Recipes -
Ingredients - 
