Moroccan veg stew
I have always fancied Moroccan flavours, the spicy kick of harissa, the sweet and savoury flavours of the spices, the tangy flavours of prunes which has always got me thinking of Arabian nights.
Moroccan dishes are usually cooked in a tagine which is an Arabian cooking pot/pan. The dishes which are cooked in the earthen pot are majorly stews with vegetables, meat and fish. The pot is placed on coals and allowed to slow cook for hours together. Since I do not have a tagine, I am going to use a closed cooking pot to cook the root vegetables. The chillies and cinnamon are the main spices which gives this dish the Moroccan flavours. This dish has lot of liquid, and couscous would be ideal to soak up and absorb the flavours of the stew.
Today's vegetable tagine is a traditional Moroccan dish served with sweet potatoes, eggplant, zucchini and lentils
What you'll need :
1 large carrots, chopped into big pieces 1 large sweet potatoes, chopped into big pieces 1 zucchini, chopped into big pieces 1 large eggplant, chopped into big pieces 1 large onion chopped into big pieces 1/4 cup cabbage chopped into big pieces
1 clove of garlic chopped finely 1 heaped tsp harissa paste (I used paprika powder instead) 1 teaspoon sea salt ½ teaspoon of turmeric ¼ teaspoon black pepper 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder 2 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 tsp coriander powder 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp dried thyme
5-6 prunes(dried candied plums) 1 cup of vegetable stock 1/2 cup cooked chick peas (I used cow peas instead) 1 cup vegetable stock (use normal water or the leftover stock while cooking chick peas) 1/2 cup couscous (serves 2 portions) 3 cups of water
How to:
Soak chick peas in 2 cups of water overnight or up to 8 hours. Pressure cook them with 2 cups of water and a tsp of salt for about 2 whistles, until they are cooked but able to hold up their shape. Since I ran out of chick peas I replaced them with cow peas and they tasted just as good. Put the olive oil in the sauce pan and sauté the chopped onion and garlic for about 2 minutes. Add the carrots, sweet potatoes, cooked chick peas(cow peas) along with all the spices (including thyme) and sauté for a minute. Add the vegetable stock, prunes and cook on low heat with lid covered for about 30 minutes. Add the eggplant, cabbage and zucchini as they do not take long to cook. Check the seasoning and add some paprika if needed. Stir occasionally and cook for 15 more minutes.
In a separate bowl, place the dry couscous and pour boiling water until the couscous is covered with water. Cover it with a lid and allow to rest for around 10 minutes. Since couscous doesn't have any taste, I prefer to add a pinch of salt to the boiling water to season the couscous. Fluff up with a fork and serve with the Moroccan stew and some mint.
