The Royal Tagine
The Royal Moroccan Tagine showcases tender beef cooked in warm spices, delicious prunes marinated in a honey-ginger marmalade, and crunchy fried almonds scattered over the top! This Tagine is also topped with boiled eggs and sesame seeds to give it extra nutrients and a beautiful, nutty flavor! Yum!
Ingredients
Meat Tagine
- 1 cup chopped onion (approximately 1 medium onion)
- 2 lbs beef or lamb (sirloin, shoulder, or shanks)
- 2 crushed garlic cloves (or 1/2 tsp garlic powder)
- 2 Tbps olive oil
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1 - 1/2 cups lukewarm water
Prune Marmalade
- 1 - 1/2 cup prunes (approximately 18 prunes)
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp orange blossom water
- 1 Tbsp honey
- 1/2 cup meat tagine broth (or more, up to 1 cup)
Other toppings
- 1/2 cup fried blanched almonds
- 2 - 3 large boiled eggs
- 1 Tbsp sesame seeds
Instructions
Cooking the Meat
- Preheat a Tagine pot on medium-low heat for 3-5 min. Put in olive oil, chopped onion, and crushed garlic. Stir and sauté for 5 min, or until the onions soften. A Dutch oven, a.k.a. cocotte, may be used instead of the Tagine pot.
- Add the beef and seasoning, and brown for 5 min. Next, flip the meat and brown for a few more minutes. Add 1 - 1/2 cups of lukewarm water, cover, and cook on medium-low heat for 45-60 minutes. To avoid burning, check the water level every 10-15 minutes, adding more lukewarm water if or as needed.
Making the Prune Marmalade
- Add all the marmalade ingredients to a saucepan, mix, and cook over medium-low for 5 minutes. Add half to one cup of broth from the meat tagine to the marmalade to avoid burning. Next, let the marmalade simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes. Please see the notes for cooking time.
- As the meat tagine is cooking and the marmalade is simmering, fry the blanched almonds and boil the eggs. If you're new to frying almonds, please see the notes below.
Serving the Royal Tagine
- Add the marmalade to your meat tagine and mix with a wooden spatula. Next, place the eggs and fried almonds on the meat and prunes. Finally, sprinkle some sesame seeds over the top. Et voila!
- Serve your tagine hot with Moroccan bread and fresh mint tea on the side. Bon appétit!
Notes
Making Fried Blanched Almonds:
- To blanch raw almonds, put them in a boiled water bowl, and cover them for 10 minutes. Next, remove the cover and peel them. They should peel easily; otherwise, allow an extra 5 minutes inside the hot water bowl. Finally, dry the almonds using a cloth or paper towel.
- The almonds should be completely dry before frying them; otherwise, they will pop. Fry your almonds on medium heat until they're golden brown; careful not to burn them. Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature before topping (or snacking, in my case).
Prunes Cooking Time:
- I use Kirkland Signature Sunsweet Pitted Prunes. Please note that different prunes require different cooking times. Mine don't take long, but you may need to cook yours longer (until soft but not too mushy).
Other Notes:
- Because the recipes for this tagine differ from family to family, there are many different ways to prepare this tagine. I don't use herbs in this recipe because I don't want to alter the flavor. Also, because I like to control the consistency of the marmalade, I cook the prunes in a different pot before adding them to the main tagine towards the end.
- Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to three days. Heat the tagine on a stove top with water to avoid burning; do not microwave.