Moroccan Tagine Cooking

[Sackville]

I have some pictures for you. The first is a pic of Moroccan Bread from one of Paula's cookbooks. I also made her Beef and Cauliflower tagine (with lamb), a carrot salad and the oranges with rosewater and cinnamon (just like I remember them from a restaurant in Marrakech!) but alas did not take pictures of all the other dishes. We were too hungry!!

I also have a pic of a recipe called Moroccan Bread Salad, although how authentically Moroccan it is I'm not sure. The recipe came from the owners of Moro and originally included directions to add olives and fresh herbs, but I have neither of those in the house so made do without.

[Wolfert]

The texture of the Moroccan bread looks absolutely correct. It must be dense in order to be a 'sopper upper' for the sauce in the tagine.

[Anna N]

The texture of the  Moroccan bread looks absolutely correct. It must be dense in order to be a 'sopper upper' for the sauce in the tagine.

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Gee, Paula, I was positive I owned the registered trade mark for "sopper upper"

[Wolfert]

Maybe we were separated at birth? Edited March 25, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[slkinsey]

This is exciting. My Souss tagine (finally) is set to arrive on Monday and my copy of Paula's book shortly thereafter. I guess I'll buy a wok ring sometime this weekend.

So... how soon can I start cooking in this thing? Sounds like I should give it at least a day for seasoning according to these instructions posted elsewhere:

Soak top and bottom of tagine in water to cover for 3 or 4 hours.

Drain and dry.

Rub top and bottom all over with olive oil. Rub wood ash (from the fireplace) all over. Hint: wear rubber gloves

Bake both parts for 8 hours in a 250 F oven

Let it cool down then wipe away excess dirt.

Repeat rubbing with olive oil and ash and baking let dry overnight in an airy place then wash, dry and rub with oil.  Let relax and add more oil. It loves oil.

Since I live in NYC, unfortunately I do not have a fireplace for wood ash -- so I guess it will be just oil for me.

After that, I'd love an inaugural recipe that's really going to show me what this thing can do -- not to mention start infusing flavor into the unglazed clay. Any suggestions?

[andiesenji]

slkinsey,

Is there a restaurant or grill or pizza place in your neighborhood that uses wood for their grill/oven, whatever.

Take a little bag with you, ask if they will give you some wood ashes and explain what you are doing with them.

I have found that a lot of restaurants are more than happy to assist people who need something that doesn't cost them money.

I have an arrangement with a local coffee shop that saves their used coffee grounds for me.

I take them an empty bucket every few days and exchange it for a full one.

I use the coffee grounds in my compost for my garden.

When my garden is producing goodies, I take them some of the veggies for their personal use. We both enjoy it and it is not a problem for them to dump the spent grounds in my bucket instead of their trash.

Edited March 25, 2005 by andiesenji (log)

[Wolfert]

the ash and oil are more cosmetic than a cure. Once dry you might want to oil it to develop a nice sheen.

that's it.

[forever_young_ca]

For dinner I made "Chicken with Lemons and Olives Emshmel" from Paula Wolfert's Couscous and other Good Food From Morocco

It was absolutely fabulous. I used PW's 30 day preserved lemons that I had made in January. By this time they have obtained an absolutely silken texture with a beautiful soft lemon flavour.

Here is a picture:

Paula - if you are reading this - a couple of questions if you don't mind -

I served this with steamed couscous. Would you have served this with couscous or bread (or both )?

Would you have browned the chicken skin to finish at the end? I liked the dish as is, but there has been some discussion as to browning dishes and I did not know if this pertained to only meat dishes or chicken as well.

I used an electric coil stove with a diffuser. I was afraid to boil the sauce too hard to reduce it down to the 1 1/2 cups as I didn't want to crack my tagine. The sauce was fabulous and very flavourful even though it wasn't reduced down to exactly 1 1/2 cups. It was nice to have lots of extra sauce to pour over the couscous.

I was tempted to leave out the cicken livers from the receipe as I thought they may make the sauce bitter, but was very glad I did not. they added considerable depth of flavour to the dish and did not end up tasting "strong".

This is a "keeper" recipe. Actually very easy to make and not time consuming in actual working time.

I know this is off topic, but here is a picture of the Orange and Radish Salad, from the same book that I served with the chicken. It was very, very pretty as well tasty and refreshing. How would you serve it - all mixed up in a plate/bowl or "arranged"

[Wolfert]

Would you have browned the chicken skin to finish at the end? I liked the dish as is, but there has been some discussion as to browning dishes and I did not know if this pertained to only meat dishes or chicken as well.

I'm thrilled you liked that version of chicken with lemon and olives. It is one of my favorite chicken tagines as well!

In Morocco, that particular tagine is served just as you prepared it without browning the skin.

In answer to your other questions:

If you like crispy skin, you can brown it.

I serve that tagine with a well reduced sauce (1 1/2 cups) and accompany it with Moroccan bread.

Once the earthenware is warmed up, you can slowly boil liquid in it. Just remember not to move the tagine to a cold surface while it is hot.

I mix the radish and orange together, but your presentation is better than anything I've ever come up with. Bravo!

[forever_young_ca]

I mix the radish and orange together, but your presentation is better than anything I've ever come up with. Bravo!

Thanks Paula for the info and the kind words. I know you have a very busy schedule and I appreciate the time you take to answer questions.

Next time I will reduce the sauce more and make Moroccon bread to accompany. - I happen to love couscous so much it is hard for me not to make it

I don't think I would bother trying to brown the skin. I would be afraid that I would dry out the exposed flesh of the chicken that is not covered with skin. Also, I don't think that this is a dish that crispy skin "goes" with.

Today's task is to replenish my stock of preserved lemons. The jar is getting dangerously close to empty!

[Wolfert]

uI don't think I would bother trying to brown the skin. I would be afraid that I would dry out the exposed flesh of the chicken that is not covered with skin. Also, I don't think that this is a dish that crispy skin "goes" with.

I agree with you about the drying out of the flesh especially for this dish. I always serve it just as you did the other night.

On the other hand, chicken tagines with fruit and nuts or with strong spicing benefit from a crisping of the skin.

[chefzadi]

Paula-

Have you ever seen Moroccan cooks roasting their spices before use? I've never seen or heard of this Algeria, so I always thought of it has an Indian technique, not a Maghrebi one.

Farid

[Wolfert]

No, I never have. I have not even seen Moroccans beloved cumin roasted.

The only time I ever saw coriander seeds toasted was in Tunisia. The cook took some barley kernels along with coriander seeds and toasted them together on a flat griddle. These were then mixed with ground spices to make a special morning soup base called bsissa.

This may surprise some egulleteers: I recommend buying certain spices such as allspice, caraway, coriander seeds and cumin finely ground. Of course, spices keep best when purchased whole, but if you buy these pre-ground spices in small amounts, you will save a lot of time. These particular spices do not grind finely enough in home electric spice mills; they will keep up to 6 months, stored in atightly closed jar kept in a dark drawer. One of the best places to find freshly ground spices in the US is at The Spice House in Evanston, Illinois (part of the Penzey family).

Edited March 28, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[chefzadi]

I agree that it's fine to purchase preground spices from a quality vendor. In Algeria and in France my relatives often purchase preground spices from suppliers who do a high turn over.

[Sackville]

I agree that it's fine to purchase preground spices from a quality vendor. In Algeria and in France my relatives often purchase preground spices from suppliers who do a high turn over.

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Last time we were in Morocco we bought a massive quantity of pre-ground cumin. I immediately put it into the freezer when we got home and we still have some of it left. Even after a year it is still more fragrant than anything I can buy in the supermarket. When I first bought it, I shipped a little to friends in Canada and they said they could smell it as soon as they picked the unopened box up from the post office, through all the cardboard and packaging!

[slkinsey]

So... I took delivery of my Souss tagine from tagines.com yesterday. Soaked it in water for several hours, rubbed with oil and put it in a 250F over overnight. Some observations:

1. It was very interesting how much it smelled like clay. I could smell clay as soon as I opened tbe box, and when I put it in the oven the apartment really smelled like baking clay for a few hours.

2. As Paula has mentioned, you can really see the flakes of mica throughout the clay. Very interesting.

3. I was a little surprised at the geometry of the base. I had been expecting something that was more or less wok shaped -- which is to say, broadly curved all the way to the bottom. That's what this picture of Paula's looks like to me, and as far as I can tell, we ordered the same tagine from the same place. Perhaps it's an illusion in the photograph? The geometry of mine is more like this:

It seems deeper than the other tagine styles, but fundamentally isn't something I'd call "rounded." Is this normal?

[Wolfert]

These are artisanal products so they don't all look alike. I have one that has that bottom shape as well and can use it stovetop with a heat diffuser+ instead of a wok stand. Either will work.

Each time you use your tagine the food will taste better than the time before. I can't explain why but that is the one of the main reasons claypot cooking survives alongside all the expensive pots and pan cooking. Remember clay breaks easily so be careful.

By the way, the simmer mat reduces the cooking temp 10 to 15 degrees. For example, my heat diffuser slows down the cooking of food to about 185 degrees on low heat. The simmer mat allowed me to reduce the heat by 15 degrees to 170.

.

Sackville: you are so lucky to have cumin of that quality.

Edited March 29, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[Richard Kilgore]

Here's my Rifi tagine after curing and aging. After washing and soaking for four hours, I oiled it, but it was a week before I had time to do the aging.

I then baked it with EVOO and ashes twice, with a trip under the broiler in between. After this treatment, it soaked up about four applications of EVOO.

[Wolfert]

I think you aged it about 20 years. I think it looks great. Don't you?

[Richard Kilgore]

I have nothing to judge by, but 20 sounds pretty good to me. It has a great deal more character than when it arrived. I think if I treat it another time and do not wash off as much of the ashes at the end before applying the EVOO, it will pick up another 20 - 30 years. What do you think?

[Smithy]

I am in awe after looking at these photos. I keep looking at my Egyptian pot - which is beautiful and cooks brilliantly - and thinking "yes, but it doesn't look like a Rifi tagine!" I *may* hold out until my birthday. Mid-May. Mid-May...Mayday on the credit card...

[Wolfert]

Richard, here is something to do:

Put on some thin plastic gloves; rub the ash with some olive oil into the clay; bake it on low heat for a couple of hours; wash off the ash; and oil again.

You can even broil the oily parts on the bottom of the tagine in small sections to give it a used look.

I think this will move it back another generation.

Edited March 29, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[slkinsey]

Some questions re "aging"

The ash/oil misxure is rubbed on the outside and the inside of the tagine?

Also, is this somthing that should be stopped once the tagine starts to be used for cooking? Or can you cure it, maybe cook a few dishes and then do a few oil/ash treatments?

It's ready for cooking more or less right after the initial cure, yes?

[Wolfert]

Some questions re "aging"

The ash/oil misxure is rubbed on the outside and the inside of the tagine?

Also, is this somthing that should be stopped once the tagine starts to be used for cooking?  Or can you cure it, maybe cook a few dishes and then do a few oil/ash treatments?

It's ready for cooking more or less right after the initial cure, yes?

The answer is yes to all the queries. It is totally cosmetic to tint the clay.

By the way, the souss tagine doesn't take to the ash-oil treatment as well as the riffi one does. This is a difference between the two clays.

[Richard Kilgore]

Thanks, Paula. I still have a few questions.

Richard, here is something to do:

Put on some thin plastic gloves; rub the ash with some olive oil into the clay; bake it on low heat for a couple of hours; wash off the ash; and oil again.

This is what I have done twice before. So are you saying to do it again, but only bake it for a couple of hours this time? And how thoroughly do you wash off the ashes? Just rinse, or scrub or what?

You can even broil the oily parts on the bottom of the tagine in small sections  to give it a used look.

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Can you clarify this please? Are you saying to do this to just the exterior of the bottom part, or interior also? How do you mean "in small sections"? Just oil/ash patches of the clay and then run it under the broiler?