In a Moroccan tagine, saffron is not a garnish — it is the backbone of the sauce, tying preserved lemon, green olives, and warm spices into a single fragrant braise. Twenty threads bloomed in stock stain the whole pot a deep amber as the chicken slowly gives way. Serve it straight from the pot with couscous and let the aroma announce dinner.
At a glance
Serves 4
Prep 20 min
Cook 55 min
Saffron: 20 threads (≈0.08 g)
Ingredients
- 20 threads Raihan Afghan Super Negin saffron, bloomed
- 4 bone-in chicken thighs
- 2 onions, sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1-inch ginger, grated
- 1 preserved lemon, rinsed, flesh discarded, peel chopped
- 1/2 cup green olives, pitted
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Brown chicken in olive oil. Remove.
- Sauté onions until softened, 8 min. Add garlic, ginger, spices. 1 min.
- Return chicken. Add stock, saffron bloom, preserved lemon, cinnamon. Cover, simmer 35 min.
- Add olives. Simmer uncovered 10 min to reduce.
- Top with cilantro. Serve with couscous or bread.
Chef's note
Turmeric gives this braise its base of gold; saffron gives it depth — don't let one substitute for the other. Bloom the threads while the onions soften and pour the liquid in with the stock so the full 45 minutes of simmering carries the aroma into the meat, not just the sauce.
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