Moroccan Tagine: Moroccan food traditional

Moroccan Tagine: Moroccan traditional food is spicy, salty, sweet, and savory, with a sauce as thick as syrup. It is a dish of tender meat, fish or vegetables stewed to perfection in a thick, oily sauce, with the addition of fruit, herbs, spices, often honey and chili. Classic Tagine is lamb stew with dried fruits, chicken with pickled lemons and green olives, duck with dates and honey, and fish cooked with fresh tomatoes, lemon and coriander.

Moroccan tagine

Moroccan Tagine: Moroccan traditional food is a dish that takes its name, precisely, from the dish. Or rather: from the container in which it is cooked and served, a small earthenware casserole with a conical chimney-shaped lid.

Tagine origin

Today we can enjoy the Moroccan Tagine: Moroccan traditional food thanks to the Berbers, natives of North Africa and Egypt. Although Tagine is a Berber dish, other people who lived at different times in Morocco have influenced its taste and preparation. Among them the Arabs, the descendants of the Moors who emigrated from Andalusia, the Sephardic Jews and the French colonizers.
By the way, Tagine is also made in Tunisia, but in a very different way. In our words, Tunisian Tagine is more like an Italian frittata or a casserole.

Tagine recipes

Therefore, to speak of Moroccan Tagine, Moroccan traditional food, is a real wild card: an infinite number of recipes can be cooked in this original contraption! All the recipes have in common that, as with so many other Moroccan dishes, they must be cooked over low heat, first as a stir-fry in the casserole dish and, after adding the seasoned water, as a slow-cooked stew.

The embedded meanings of the Moroccan Tagine

The Tagine is not only decorative, it has a lot of meaning. It is the perfect pot for stewing. This is because a special condensation of steam occurs thanks to the domed lid. The Tagine is cooked for a long time and over low heat. The steam, impregnated with spices, rises, condenses on the walls of the dome and flows back over the ingredients. Thus, there is a constant circulation of moisture inside the Tagine. Thanks to this process, everything cooked in the Tagine is unusually tender and juicy, enveloped by aromatic steam.

What is special about a Tagine?

And what is the purpose of the conical lid? Well, for two purposes at the same time: on the one hand, to keep the food warm and, on the other hand, to prevent it from drying out. In the latter case, this is achieved because it prevents them from losing moisture and condenses on the inside walls of the lid and is precipitated back into the casserole.

The most popular Moroccan Tagines

As we said, there is an infinity of Moroccan Tagines. And we are not only talking about Tagines according to the city or the region but also according to each home and each restaurant, each one can give it its special touch or even create a recipe from scratch!

Of course, the ones you will probably find more often during your trip to Morocco are the following, as we indicate on our Gastronomy page:

Chicken Tagine: this is the most popular. For example, the one that combines this meat with lemon and olives.

Lamb Tagine: cooking it with boiled eggs, almonds, and dates is very common.

Beef Tagine: with apple and raisins, it achieves an interesting mix of flavors, including salty and sweet tastes.

Fish Tagine: made with fresh fish, vegetables, and spices, cooked in a Tagine pot. It’s a light and healthy option that can be enjoyed on its own or with couscous or bread.

Tuna Tagine: with onion, tomato and other vegetables.

Sardine Tagine: with red bell pepper, green bell pepper, tomato and potato.

Vegetarian Tagines: as can be deduced from the way it is prepared, Moroccan Tagine lends itself perfectly to vegetarian recipes. Among the most common ingredients are legumes (especially chickpeas), nuts (almonds), vegetables (tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, etc.), fruits (dates, apples)… and, of course, a good dose of spices and herbs.

The best brands of Tagine

Although to cook Moroccan Tagine at home, especially on the glass-ceramic hob, it is still preferable to buy a French-made Tagine. Our stores abound with Tagines from well-known, high-quality brands such as Emile Henry and Staub, Le Creuset. These brands will offer you heat-resistant ceramic or enameled cast iron. Cast iron is good because you can fry the meat before stewing it. In the north, in cities such as Tangier and Casablanca, where the Spanish and French influence on local cuisine is evident, meat is roasted beforehand.

In Fez and Marrakech, Tagines are usually cooked by combining all the ingredients and adding a little water and oil at the end of cooking. You should try having a cup of Moroccan tea with the tagine to experience the cultural vibe fully.

As you can see, Moroccan Tagine is a whole world. Therefore, the best thing to do is… try several during your trip so that you can compare and evaluate. We will help you to choose a restaurant if you wish!