Recipe of the week: Spicy Chicken Tagine With Apricots, Rosemary, and Ginger

Visit Marrakesh, Morocco, and you are likely to find tagine pots for sale just about everywhere, said Katie Aberbach in The Washington Post. But those tagines are “better off on display than in your oven.” They are usually untreated and likely to crack and ruin food. You’d need to treat them yourself, but it’s easier just to buy an inauthentic but trustworthy cast iron–based tagine.

Spicy Chicken Tagine With Apricots, Rosemary, and Ginger

2 tbsp olive oil, plus pat butter

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1 onion, finely chopped

3 fresh rosemary sprigs, 1 finely chopped, the other 2 cut in half

1½-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped

2 fresh red chilies, seeded and finely chopped

1–2 cinnamon sticks

8 chicken thighs

6 oz ready-to-eat dried apricots

2 tbsp clear, runny honey

14-oz can plum tomatoes with juice

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

leaves from a small bunch of fresh green or purple basil

Heat oil and butter in tagine. Add onion, chopped rosemary, ginger, and chilies, and sauté until onion begins to soften.

Stir in halved rosemary sprigs and cinnamon. Add chicken and brown on both sides. Toss in apricots with honey, then stir in tomatoes with juice. (Add water if needed, to ensure there is enough liquid to cover base of tagine and submerge apricots.) Bring to boil, then reduce heat. Cover and simmer gently for 35–40 minutes, until chicken is cooked.

Season with salt and pepper. Shred basil leaves, leaving small ones intact. Sprinkle over chicken and serve with plain, buttered couscous and leafy salad greens. Serves 4.