Chicken tagine with almonds is a Moroccan festive dish, served at weddings and special occasions, and it sits in the same family as the existing Mrouzia (honey-raisin lamb) but with a different flavor profile: it is not a sweet-savory dish, but a rich, nutty, saffron-and-almond dish where the almonds are the co-star rather than an afterthought. The chicken is cooked in a butter-and-saffron sauce, and the almonds, blanched and fried, are stirred in at the end with a dusting of cinnamon and sugar. It is a Fassi dish, associated with the refined cooking of Fez, and the combination of chicken, almonds and saffron is one of the oldest festive formulas in Moroccan cuisine.
The chicken is tender in a glossy, buttery saffron sauce; the almonds are crunchy and golden, the cinnamon-sugar dusting adds a whisper of sweetness. It is refined, festive and deeply Moroccan.
The almonds must be blanched, peeled, and fried separately before being added, and this three-step preparation is what separates this dish from a humble tagine. Blanching removes the bitter brown skin. Peeling gives the clean, white appearance. Frying in oil until golden develops Maillard browning and a brittle crunch that soaking in the sauce would destroy. They are added at the very end, off the heat, so they stay crisp. The butter-and-saffron sauce is reduced until it coats the back of a spoon, concentrating the saffron's flavor.
Variations
Some add a handful of raisins for sweetness. Pigeon is the most traditional and festive version. A Marrakchi variant uses smen instead of butter.
On the Palate
Where Chicken Tagine with Almonds sits in the Moroccan flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6
How it's made
6 steps · 30 min
- 18 min
Brown 1.5 kg chicken pieces in 2 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil; add 2 sliced onions, 1 tsp saffron, 1 tsp ginger, salt; cook 5 min.
- 215 min
Add 1 cup water; cover and simmer 35 min until tender.
- 38 min
Blanch and peel 150 g almonds; fry in oil until golden; drain.
Watch outFry the peeled almonds only until pale gold — they keep browning off the heat, and one shade too dark turns them bitter.
- 48 min
Uncover the tagine; reduce the sauce until thick and glossy.
Watch outReduce the sauce uncovered until it turns glossy and thickly coats the back of a spoon — that's where the saffron flavour concentrates.
- 53 min
Stir in the fried almonds; dust with 1 tsp cinnamon mixed with 1 tsp sugar.
Watch outFold the fried almonds in at the very end so they stay crisp — stir them in early and the sauce softens them to mush.
- 63 min
Serve with couscous or bread.
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