Moroccan Tagine Cooking

[FlyingChopstik]

First tagine: lamb with eggplant, from the Moroccan food About.com site. I used shanks.

Served with bread from Whole Foods that looked remarkably similar to moroccan bread ("pan paesano")

So for a first attempt I was blown away by how easy a process (I'd venture to say lazy, in fact) and how well it came out.

Questions:

• When stacking the vegetables on top as I've often seen, are they cooking by steam alone? The very tops of the eggplants were a bit underdone
• Isn't it normal to cover the meat with grated onions? Per the recipe, i lined the oiled tagine bottom with sliced onions, then garlic, then herbs, then placed the meat and sprinkled the spices on top, then when the meat was half done, placed the eggplant and preserved lemons around the meat.
• How long does it take for meat to be truly falling-off-the-bone tender? The above dish went for about 4 hours and while tender, it wasn't *quite* at that stage.
• Bone-in meat tends to be pretty fatty. Is 1/4-1/3 cup layer of oil at the bottom of the tagine really necessary given the fat from the meat renders out? The final dish, while delicious, was VERY oily/fatty.

Dude, good job on your 1st tagine attempt. It looks yummy. i know how you feel. ive cooked this same recipe from about.com and had similar results with the eggplant. Heres my thoughts:

I think those shanks are huge. Next time cut them into large chunks and that should take care of the tenderness and shorten the cooking tme. I always cut shanks into 3 large chunks and they are falling off the bone within 2 hours.

For the oil, it varies. I necer use a 1/3 cup for shanks. Usually i just drizzle some on the bottom which amounts to a little unfer a 1/4 cup.

You can cover meat with onions or layer them on the bottom...whatever you wish. Ive done both.

As for the eggplant (and veggies in general) -- in my many experiences of cooking with tagines, you dont have to turn the veggies as the steam from condensation will cook them as long as you have enough water. BUT for this recipe, this was the only time that this wasnt the case. The eggplant that cooked in the juices cooked fine but the top layer, like yours was undercooked. In the future, if you choose to do this recipe again, i would make sure that eggplant is either rotate them in the sauce every so often so they are covered with juice or layered on the bottom, or you can cut them into smaller chunks. What you can do at the moment is remove lamb and cook eggplant in the leftover juices for 45 min. When i made this dish the eggplant tasted better the next day.

Edited February 15, 2015 by FlyingChopstik (log)

[Hassouni]

Thanks. How would I cut the shanks? I don't have a bandsaw or serious enough cleaver. Noted re: oil and shanks. I'm guessing if I used chunks of meat, I could fit the eggplant in around the chunks rather than over the shanks, where they aren't immersed in liquid. 

 

Speaking of leftovers, I'm guessing the tagine can't be put in the fridge and then slowly reheated with contents inside...or am I wrong?

 

Also, re: recipes, again not having any of Wolfert's books, have you made many of the others from the About.com site, and did they also turn out well?

[FlyingChopstik]

Thanks. How would I cut the shanks? I don't have a bandsaw or serious enough cleaver. Noted re: oil and shanks. I'm guessing if I used chunks of meat, I could fit the eggplant in around the chunks rather than over the shanks, where they aren't immersed in liquid. 

 

Speaking of leftovers, I'm guessing the tagine can't be put in the fridge and then slowly reheated with contents inside...or am I wrong?

 

Also, re: recipes, again not having any of Wolfert's books, have you made many of the others from the About.com site, and did they also turn out well?

I ask the butcher to cut the shanks when i purchase them.

I always transfer leftovers into tubbaware and reheat on the stove in a double boiler. I wouldnt put the tagine in the fridge nor reheat leftovers in it because it would take too long and you could risk cracking it because of the rapid temperature change unless you let it sit at room temp for a while. But i dont have an hr to wait for leftovers to reheat.

On about.com, these recipes turned out great though most of the time I end up creating my own version or blending hers and Wolferts recipes together.

--chicken with preserved lemon and olives

--chicken with apricots

--lamb with prunes

---rfissa

--loubia

--black eyed peas

Also check out the other sites i told you about: cuisine moracaine by mamat kamal and sousous kitchen on youtube. The dishes of those ladies especially sousouskitchen tastes like im back in Morocco and you can watch how she prepares everything.

[FlyingChopstik]

From about.com i also tried these recipes and they were delicious as well

--lamb with preserve lemon and olives

--lamb with quince

--lamb b with zucchinni potatoes and peas

[SLB]

A friend brought me the following tagine back from Morocco.  Unlike most of the tagines discussed here (or anywhere), the bowl is glazed, and about two inches of the interior of the lid is glazed.  The rest is unglazed.  The shape is like the "Beldi" on tagines.com, but that one is totally unglazed, and also has a steam hole in the cone (mine does not).  Is there any particular point to the surfaces being half-glazed?  I can't seem to find much discussion of this style of tagine anywhere.   

 

 

 

Edited March 9, 2015 by SLB (log)

[SLB]

Just following up -- for what it's worth, Vanessa at Tagines.com explained to me that mine was commonly used by Moroccans in Morocco, but that they are not rated for export to the US due to lead.  I've had it for a decade, and used it faithfully for about half that time, so hopefully I didn't kill too many brain cells.  I love this ole' girl, but . . .  

 

I've ordered myself a Souss!  Yippee.  And, to save on shipping, I also ordered myself a tagra that I've been pining away for.  I keep meaning to eat more fish . . . .

[FlyingChopstik]

SLB it sounds like you made the right choice! I brought a tagine like yours back from Morocco but once I read about the lead found in them I got rid of it. Ive been very satisfied witg my unglazed souss and tagra.

[Smithy]

Just following up -- for what it's worth, Vanessa at Tagines.com explained to me that mine was commonly used by Moroccans in Morocco, but that they are not rated for export to the US due to lead.  I've had it for a decade, and used it faithfully for about half that time, so hopefully I didn't kill too many brain cells.  I love this ole' girl, but . . .  

 

I've ordered myself a Souss!  Yippee.  And, to save on shipping, I also ordered myself a tagra that I've been pining away for.  I keep meaning to eat more fish . . . .

 

SLB, if you'd like a little peace of mind you can order a lead testing kit and test your existing tagine.  The test kit doesn't cost much - you may even be able to get it at a local hardware store - and is nondestructive.  The Souss and tagra will be a lot of fun anyway, but you may learn that you haven't been risking brain cells all this time.  Did Vanessa indicate that you could still use your existing tagine as server ware?  I've read about that with some tagines that aren't intended to be cooked in but can be used for the finished dish.

[SLB]

Oh I tested it on just that theory.  The swab came back bad.  Sigh.  This was definitely a vessel intended for cooking, and I'll probably keep it just because my loved one hauled it back from Morocco (as in, through the straights of Gibralter, up through Spain, and then back to Maine, then down to New York . . .  I can't really toss it).   

 

On the lead -- fortunately, I am not a child, and have fed no children from that vessel that I can remember.  Although, I guess memory loss is a symptom . . . .

 

Just kidding.  Lead is very serious, even for adults, and I don't know if mere serving is risky.  In truth, I've ingested a whole lot of toxins over the years, and I'm otherwise undeservedly exceedingly healthy.  So I'm not gonna get crazy with the regret.  For now.

 

Also, I'm kind of looking forward to tasting my favorites from Paula's original book in an unglazed clay context, which seems like it just has to taste different.  Also, I have a strict rule prohibiting the purchase of new kitchen stuff (if I don't go strict, I kinda go crazy), and while I wouldn't wish lead toxicity on anyone, I'm kind of thrilled at the excuse to Get Some New Stuff!  Seriously, I'm testing everything!  On some level, I wish the 70s CorningWare would come back bad.

Edited March 11, 2015 by SLB (log)

[Smithy]

I'm sorry to hear the news about the lead - but I totally understand the "no new stuff without an excuse" syndrome! :-D

[Hassouni]

You got the Souss one right? That one is pretty sturdy and allegedly can take naked flame fine.

[IndyRob]

Our stove has two regular burners, a 'power burner', and a simmer burner (just a smaller burner with a smaller radius, and lower volume of gas). I've never used such a device with any of them.  I just checked the bottom of several various pans from my kitchen and they're all pretty pristine underneath (well, except that one that has experienced several boil-overs).

 

If you're getting good results topside, I wouldn't worry about it.  Presumably, you're simmering a volume of liquid which is dispersing the heat pretty well.

 

But I might be persuaded to use one if these things for very specific low heat, high viscosity applications like hollandaise, melting chocolate, or maybe a cheese sauce.  But that's not really what the simmer burner was designed for.  A double boiler, or even the microwave, are better candidates for these.

[SLB]

I did order the Souss.  But I've got some other clay pots, which I usually use with a flame tamer.  So I was wondering if the simmer burner was the same thing.  

 

I posted this query in its own thread in Kitchen Consumer, and I now think that the flame tamer will diffuse the heat in a way that just isn't going to happen with the simmer burner, which is still direct heat if little of it.  I appreciate that the Souss may not need its benefits, but I've got other clay pots and my stovetop burns quite hot.

 

Either way, I hope my Souss comes soon, because I am eating through my freezer in preparation for spring, and what did I find but some short ribs!!!  Woo-HOO!  

 

I think it's gonna be beef with prunes and apples, or else beef with butternut squash.  Because I really need to get through this butternut squash, even though there is so much of it from my CSA this winter that my skin is gonna turn orange.   

Edited March 14, 2015 by SLB (log)

[SLB]

Thanks, all.  I was asking for use with clay pots, that's really the only place where I pull out the flame tamer anymore.  

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Even if the tagine can take the heat without damage, you probably don't want to cook at that temperature.  On my electric stove I use two flame tamers together.  While this has worked well for me, even better is to cook the meat (assuming you are using meat) sous vide before assembling the tagine.

[Smithy]

I agree with JoNorvelleWalker about not wanting a small direct heat source under your clay pots, even if they can take it.  You need the heat to be distributed more evenly, and not as intensely, as most "simmer" burners provide.

 

For those who may not own a flame tamer or two, I'll point out that at one time Paula Wolfert swore by the http://www.amazon.com/Simmer-Mat-5200-Diffuser/dp/B000W24RW8/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=http://www.amazon.com/Simmer-Mat-5200-Diffuser/dp/B000W24RW8&linkCode=as2&tag=egulletcom-20">Simmer Mat; she thought it was an outstanding product. I haven't bought one, having gotten by all these years with a garden-variety flame tamer a friend gave me, but if I were starting out I'd consider the Simmer Mat for its even heat distribution.

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I use a Simmer Mat (based on Paula's recommendation) and a cast iron Italian one.

[FlyingChopstik]

The simmer mat is awesome! Just give yourself additional time as it can take longer for the dish to cook on a flame tamer/diffuser.

Edited March 14, 2015 by FlyingChopstik (log)

[SLB]

I have a garden variety flame tamer, a simmer mat, and an iron item that is called a flame tamer but really only just reduces the circumference on the burner-grate opening (for, say, a moka pot or the small metal cups I use to heat milk or melt butter).  

 

I confess that I don't really notice a difference in function between the flame tamer and the simmer mat.  However.  If you were were going to do something VERY ILL-ADVISED like leave the house with something on the stove, I urge you to consider the possibility that the wood handle on the garden variety flame tamer might, um, miraculously manage to scorch while you are out, in direct contravention of anything you thought could be possible when you set the situation up prior to leaving the house.  I'm just sayin' . . . .  

Edited March 14, 2015 by SLB (log)

[Hassouni]

Chicken and fennel tagine http://moroccanfood.about.com/od/moroccanchickenrecipes/r/Chicken_tagine_with_fennels.htm

 

About to cook:

 

Finished!

 

I was surprised to see the recipe call for the chicken in pieces, I thought the Moroccan way was to put the chicken in whole? As it was, I could barely fit all the pieces in (drumsticks separated from thighs, each breast cut in two, wings).  That being said, it was quite delicious!

 

Thoughts: the recipe said to add half a cup of water, so I did. A LOT of liquid (both water and fat) rendered out of the ingredients when cooking, and I had to suck up some oil with paper towels throughout the procedure.

 

I thought recipes for unglazed tagines typically specify NO additional water?

Edited March 19, 2015 by Hassouni (log)

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Chicken and fennel tagine http://moroccanfood.about.com/od/moroccanchickenrecipes/r/Chicken_tagine_with_fennels.htm

 

About to cook:

image.jpg

 

Finished!

image.jpg

 

I was surprised to see the recipe call for the chicken in pieces, I thought the Moroccan way was to put the chicken in whole? As it was, I could barely fit all the pieces in (drumsticks separated from thighs, each breast cut in two, wings).  That being said, it was quite delicious!

 

Thoughts: the recipe said to add half a cup of water, so I did. A LOT of liquid (both water and fat) rendered out of the ingredients when cooking, and I had to suck up some oil with paper towels throughout the procedure.

 

I thought recipes for unglazed tagines typically specify NO additional water?

 

Most of (all of?) Paula's tagine recipes call for water.  And for a chicken tagine, chicken legs or thighs.

[FlyingChopstik]

Hassouni

When cooking chicken it is not always whole.Moroccans cook chicken either way, whole or in pieces.

As for the water, when cooking chickwn, you dont need a lot of water at all for reasons that you experienced. The chicken will release some juice and fat. I use very little water when cooking chicken in tagine. In the future, i def wouldnt use a half cup. Try a little under 1/4 cup.

[SLB]

Does anyone think it's essential to keep different tagines for different meats?  I understand the debate and thinking about using the same unglazed clay for very different spicing.  But Ms. Wolfert has noted in places using particular tagines for lamb and others for chicken.  I'm not sure I understand why this is necessary and haven't done that in general with my clay pots.  Thoughts?

[patrickamory]

I thought Wolfert advocated separate tangines for fish and meat, not for different kinds of meat...

[Hassouni]

I wouldn't worry too much about it. After two uses (lamb shanks and on the bone chicken) my tagine smells of the spices but not of the meats/fats.