Easy Apricot Chicken Tagine with Chickpeas
This delicious, aromatic, sweet and tangy apricot chicken tagine cooked in a rich tomato sauce with chickpeas requires surprisingly little effort and makes a fantastic weeknight family dinner.
Servings 5 servings
Calories 410kcal
Equipment
- Large shallow dish with lid
Ingredients
- 6 chicken thighs skinless, boneless
- 12 dried apricots deseeded, whole or roughly chopped
- 1x14.11oz can chickpeas reserve chickpea water
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves finely chopped
- ⅔ cup passata
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1-2 tablespoons apricot jam
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin and paprika each
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger, cayenne pepper, cinnamon and allspice each
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Cilantro/fresh coriander, parsley or mint for garnish plus almond flakes
Instructions
- In a large shallow dish heat up 2 tablespoons of oil, add the spices, stir then add the onion and garlic and cook gently for 3 minutes until softened stirring frequently. Push the mixture to the sides, add the chicken thighs and cook for 2 minutes on each side.
- Add the chickpeas (plus chickpea water), passata, tomato puree, chicken stock, apricots and apricot jam, stir, cover and bring to the boil then simmer gently for 45 minutes stirring often.
- Remove from the heat, adjust the seasoning if needed (and a splash of water if the sauce is too thick), scatter freshly chopped herbs and flaked almonds over the whole thing and enjoy!
Notes
- I do not recommend using white meat instead of dark meat in this recipe. White meat does not benefit from prolonged cooking (after 40 minutes of cooking it's likely to be chewy).
- Substitutions: If you prefer not to use apricot jam add sweet chilli sauce. Garnish either with freshly chopped cilantro, parsley or mint (or a combination of these herbs)
- The sauce will thicken after a while so if you are reheating leftovers the next day you may want to add a little water (and adjust the seasoning if needed). Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 410kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 133mg | Sodium: 400mg | Potassium: 930mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 1260IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 3mg