Moroccan Baked Chicken – Chicken Tagine

A delicious Chicken Tagine recipe made with simple, easy to find ingredients. This Moroccan Baked Chicken dish is so full of exotic flavors. It’s a warming dish to serve over rice, mash, or your favorite low carb substitute.

*This post is sponsored by SunButter, a sunflower seed spread perfect for allergy-safe baking and cooking! Thanks for supporting the brands that keep Sunkissed Kitchen running.

Easy Moroccan Chicken Tagine

Baked chicken thighs get a serious upgrade in this Moroccan inspired dish!

Chicken tagine is a Moroccan Chicken stew popular in Moroccan cuisine. It’s made by baking a flavorful chicken in a spiced broth, along with vegetables, dried fruit, and sometimes chickpeas, preserved lemon, and green olives.

A tagine pot is a clay cooking vessel with a conical lid used in Moroccan cooking. The tagine is filled with meat, spices, and flavor additions, then baked over a fire.

Ras el Hanout is a spice blend used in Moroccan cuisine. It’s a blend of cumin, coriander, ginger, turmeric, and black pepper. Instead of searching out this spice, I make my own (it’s simple!).

To bring those flavors into our modern kitchens, I use a cast iron pot. The chicken is browned on the stovetop, then mixed with onions, spices, and a flavorful broth, before being baked in the oven.

The result is the most flavorful and juicy chicken thighs, perfect for serving over rice, couscous, or your favorite low carb substitute, like cauliflower rice or zucchini noodles.

I love using SunButter to add a thick, creamy texture to sauces. It’s the perfect compliment to earthy spices and sweet pops of dried fruit in this chicken tagine recipe.

The No Sugar Added variety is perfect for baking and for sauces, so you can control the level of sweetness.

Hop on over to SunButter’s website to see where it’s sold near you!

What You’ll Need

• Chicken Thighs (any bone-in chicken pieces will work!)
• Avocado Oil (or olive oil)
• Sea Salt and Black Pepper
• Onions
• Garlic Cloves
• Spices (cumin, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon (or a cinnamon stick), and cayenne )
• Chicken Broth
• SunButter No Sugar Added
• Dried fruit: dried tart cherries, apricots, or golden raisins
• Carrots
• Lemons and Cilantro (to garnish)

How to Make Baked Moroccan Chicken Thighs

Step 1: Pat the chicken thighs dry with paper towels, then season them generously with sea salt and black pepper.

Step 2: Heat a large covered cast iron pot over medium-high heat, and add the avocado oil. Place chicken thighs skin side down in the pan to crisp the skin to a golden brown. I do this is batches, to allow space between the chicken pieces, so they brown more evenly. Remove browned chicken from the pan and set aside.

Step 3: Into the skillet, add the onions and garlic. Saute the vegetables over medium heat for about 7 minutes until softened.

Step 4: Add the spices, chicken stock, and SunButter into the pot, and whisk until combined and smooth. Bring the mixture to a low simmer, then remove from heat.

Step 5: Back in to the pot, add the chicken thighs. Top with chopped carrots and dried fruit (cherries, apricots, or raisins). Add lemon zest over the top of the dish.

Step 6: Bake the chicken for 30 minutes covered. Remove the cover, and continue baking the dish for 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and lemon slices to serve.

Variations & How to Serve Chicken Tagine

Chickpeas: Chicken tagine is often made with chickpeas. If desired, add a can of chickpeas to the stew when returning the chicken thighs to the pot.

Preserved Lemon: Preserved lemons are seasoned and pickled. The process softens the acidity and makes a sweet and sour condiment that is used in Mediterranean cooking. If desired, use preserved lemon instead of dried fruit in this recipe.

Make with Boneless Chicken: Use skinless chicken breasts or chicken thighs in place of the bone-in chicken. Prepare in the same manner by browning the chicken and returning it to the pot. Chicken breasts will take the same amount of time to cook through. Chicken thighs cook faster, so reduce baking time to 15 minutes covered and 5 minutes uncovered.

Serve this chicken stew over:

• Steamed rice or quinoa
• A gluten free couscous
• Cauliflower Rice
• In a bowl like a stew, with flatbread for dipping. Use this gluten free flatbread recipe to keep it GF!

How to Store Leftovers

Once the chicken has fully cooled, store leftovers in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Other Baked Chicken Thigh Recipes

• Greek Lemon Chicken and Rice
• Crispy Oven Baked Chicken Thighs
• Chicken Scarpariello

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