CHICKPEA TAGINE WITH CHICKEN AND APRICOTS

Chickpea Tagine With Chicken and Apricots image

Tagines, the slow-cooked, deeply aromatic stews of North Africa, are traditionally made and served in distinctive clay pots, often with lamb, and usually over couscous. This isn't a traditional version: It's fairly quick, and it relies on a heavy-bottomed saucepan rather than a tagine. With chicken thighs, bulgur, chickpeas and dried apricots, it comes together to produce an Americanized version that is a super one-pot dinner, fast enough for a weeknight despite the long ingredient list, and infinitely variable.

Provided by Mark Bittman

Categories dinner, easy, weekday, one pot, main course

Time 45m

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 16

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Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 skinless chicken thighs
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1 cup chopped tomato (fresh or canned or boxed, with juice)
2 cups cooked or canned chickpeas, drained, with the liquid reserved
1 to 2 cups chicken stock, bean liquid or water, or more as needed
1/2 cup bulgur
Salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley, for garnish

Steps:

Put oil in a large, deep pot over medium-high heat. When oil is shimmering, add chicken and brown well on both sides; remove from pan and set aside. Reduce heat to medium, add onion to the pan and cook until soft, about 5 minutes; add garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, dried apricots and tomato. Cook and stir just long enough to loosen any brown bits from bottom of pan.
Add chickpeas and 1 cup of stock or bean liquid to the pan and turn heat back to medium-high. When mixture reaches a gentle bubble, return chicken to the pan. Cover pot, turn heat to low and cook, checking occasionally to make sure the mixture is bubbling gently, for about 15 minutes or until tomatoes break down and flavors begin to meld. Stir in bulgur, adding more stock if necessary so that the mixture is covered with about an inch of liquid. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover and cook until the chicken and bulgur are both done, about 10 to 15 minutes. Taste, adjust the seasonings and serve in bowls garnished with parsley.

Nutrition Facts : @context http, Calories 536, UnsaturatedFat 12 grams, Carbohydrate 49 grams, Fat 18 grams, Fiber 11 grams, Protein 47 grams, SaturatedFat 3 grams, Sodium 1117 milligrams, Sugar 14 grams, TransFat 0 grams