23. Winter Vegetable Tagine

Turnip was a controversial choice in my household - I stand by it, and love the earthiness and subtle bitterness it brings that adds further complexity to this seriously decadent tagine. But that bitterness isn’t for everyone, and a good alternative would be to substitute with half a cauliflower.

Great

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

In a tagine or Dutch oven, sauté the onion and garlic in 2 tbsp of the olive oil. When translucent, remove from the pan and brown the sweet potato and turnip individually in a further tbsp of olive oil each.

Step 2

Use a little of the stock to deglaze the pan, then add the spices and cinnamon stick, and return first the onion/garlic mixture, then the diced vegetables back to the pan. Add the rest of the stock. The water level should be just below the vegetables, if it’s too low, add some more water. Add the prunes and preserved lemon. Season with salt if your stock isn’t salty. Put the lid on and cook in the oven for 30 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.

Step 3

Remove from the oven and return the tagine to the stove on low heat, and add the chickpeas, beans, honey and olives. Cook for a further 10-15 minutes, or until the beans are soft. Taste the tagine and balance the flavours - I found it needed a fair bit more salt still at this point.

Step 4

Now that the tagine is back on the stove, heat the stock to boiling and add to the couscous, covering with a plate. When the cous cous has swelled, usually just a couple minutes, fluff with a fork, and add the herbs, lemon juice, and olive oil.

Step 5

Serve the tagine on a bed of the herby cous cous mixture, and top with almonds and harissa. Add as much harissa as the eater would like, based on their preference of spiciness.