The Moroccan Tagine
A Tajine or Tagine is a type of dish found in the North African cuisine of Morocco, which is named after the special pot in which it is cooked. The traditional tagine pot is formed entirely of clay which is sometimes painted or glazed. It consists of two parts; a base unit which is flat and circular with low sides, and a large cone or dome-shaped cover that rests inside the base during cooking. The cover is so designed to promote the return of all condensation to the bottom, producing a very tender and succulent result. Removal of the cover without the aid of a mitten is facilitated by the knob-like formation at its top enabling the cook to inspect the main ingredient, add vegetables, move things around or add additional braising liquids. With the cover removed, the base can be taken to the table for serving.
There are two types of tagines – cooking and serving.
The cooking tagines are less ornamental in their design and usually are made with a small hole or “pressure valve” to allow excess steam to escape. They need to be seasoned before use by immersing in water for 24 hours and then lightly oiled and heated at a low temperature.
The serving tagines are hand-painted with warm colours and exotic designs and can be used to serve individual or family meals.
Tagines in Moroccan cuisine are slow-cooked stews of less expensive cuts braised at low temperatures, resulting in tender meat with aromatic vegetables and sauce. They often combine lamb or chicken with a medley of ingredients or seasonings: olives, quinces, apples, pears, apricots, raisins, prunes, dates, nuts, with fresh or preserved lemons, with or without honey, with or without a complexity of spices. Traditional spices that are used to flavour tagines include ground cinnamon, saffron, ginger, turmeric, cumin, paprika, pepper, as well as the famous spice blend Ras el hanout (literal translation being Top of the Shop) Some famous tagine dishes are mqualli or emshmel (both are pairings of chicken, olives and citrus fruits, though preparation methods differ), kefta (meatballs in an egg and tomato sauce), and mrouzia (lamb, raisins and almonds).
Morrocan Tagine at Taboon Robina
Taboon Tagines are made in the authentic manner.
However the serving dish, whilst very exotic and attractive, does not create the wonderful moist succulent result and melding of flavors of the cooking tagine.
At Taboon we use the residual heat of our stone oven to slow-cook our tagines overnight in the traditional clay cooking tagine.
The combination of the stone oven and clay tagine produces food as it used to be, warming earthy and wholesome.
We are creating modern versions of classic Moroccan recipes, using unique spice blends such as Ras el Hanout, Baharat and Chermoula and combining them with quality Australian meat, dried fruits and vegetables.
The results speak for themselves and bring a little bit of Morocco and the flavour of North Africa to Robina on the Gold Coast
