No clay pot? No problem. This slow-simmered chicken tagine comes together beautifully in a deep Neoflam pan.
A tagine is less about the conical clay pot and more about the method: layered aromatics, patient heat, and a sauce that builds itself. When you do not have a traditional tagine handy, a deep lidded Neoflam pan makes an outstanding — and much quicker to clean — stand-in.
Start with the base. Warm a splash of olive oil in a 24 cm deep pan over medium heat and soften a finely sliced onion with a pinch of saffron and a teaspoon of ginger, cumin and paprika. Stir until fragrant, then nestle four chicken pieces into the pan and brown them gently on each side so the spices cling to the skin.
Add a handful of pitted olives, a preserved lemon cut into wedges, and a sliver of preserved lemon rind for extra punch. Pour in about 300 ml of water — just enough to come a third of the way up the chicken — and season with salt and pepper.
Lower the heat to a quiet simmer, cover with the lid and let it cook for 45 minutes. The ceramic coating keeps the sauce gently moving without scorching, exactly like a clay pot, so check only once or twice. Add the fresh herbs — a generous crown of coriander and parsley — in the last ten minutes so they keep their colour.
When the chicken is falling off the bone and the sauce has thickened round the olives, serve straight from the pan with warm bread or couscous. One pot, one lid, and a Moroccan classic that tastes like it simmered all afternoon — because it did.
