Tagine Cuisine

Hello my foodie friends! We are going to talk about the Morroccan Tagine this week. Many moons ago when my daughter was 8 and my son was 10 my wife and I toke them to Disney World where we had dinner at Restaurant Marrakesh in the Morroccan Pavilion. The kids had couscous (they wanted hot dogs) and Paula and I shared Lamb Tagine. I think they are serving Mogador fish tagine right now. Anyway it was delicious! We were so impressed with this meal – it was so full of flavor and melted in your mouth. Well wouldn’t you know it, shortly thereafter I was selling Tagines in my store! The word Tagine refers to both the contents and the container. A Tagine is a dish made from glazed clay, which has a lid like a painted hat, allowing the steam to circulate inside, creating a fall of the bone moist dish. All recipes cooked inside this type of dish are also called Tagine. There are a great number of recipes; the most prestigious is the Lamb Tagine with dried prunes and almonds. It is representative of Morroccan cooking with its mix of sweet and sour. But you also find Tagines with figs or dried apricots, onions and almonds, sweet potatoes and dried raisins. You can find Tagines made with lamb, chicken, beef, pigeon or even fish. Many herbs and spices are used in the Tagine; ginger, cinnamon, parsley, as well as coriander/ cilantro or Arabic parsley, the fresh leaves being added at the end of the cooking in order to keep the full flavor of aniseed. There are many Tagine recipes, but as Morroccan cooking leaves a lot to instinct, let your imagination guide you and create your own Tagine! By the way Johnny and Aubrey still love couscous to this day! My favorite Tagine is made by Emile Henry it can be used on the stovetop or oven. Remember “Life Happens in the Kitchen” Take Care, John