3 Easy Prep Tagine Recipes

A proper Moroccan tagine is a treat for the whole family. Packed full of incredible flavors and cooked in one pot (also known as a tagine), these gorgeous dishes will never fail to impress. Read on to find about the three easy prep tagine recipes.

When you’re creating delicious international meals, you would be forgiven for thinking it will take hours of patience and super-intricate cooking methods you’ve never heard of… But making a fantastic Moroccan tagine doesn’t need to be a lot of work!

In fact, many of our absolute favorite tagine dishes take just 15 minutes of prep, so you can create masterpieces with minimum effort.

Below, we’ve picked some of the best easy prep tagine recipes that are sure to impress even the fussiest of dinner guests and are perfect for a mid-week treat when cooking simply feels like too much effort. 

1. Traditional Moroccan Chicken Tagine

This incredible recipe is filled with traditional Moroccan flavors and ingredients, including preserved lemons and super-succulent chicken. It’s so good, you won’t believe it only takes 15 minutes to prepare!

Ingredients: 

• 1-2 Preserved lemons (quartered and deseeded, flesh removed and finely chopped)
• 1 whole chicken (skin removed, cut into pieces)
• 2 large onions (finely chopped)
• 2-3 garlic cloves (chopped or pressed)
• 1 handful fresh cilantro (chopped)
• 1 handful fresh parsley (chopped)
• 2 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp salt 
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 handfuls of olives
• ¼ cup Water

Method: 

1. For prep tagine recipes, add the lemon flesh, chicken, onion, garlic, cilantro, parsley, ginger, pepper, turmeric, and salt to a large bowl and mix together – ideally leaving overnight to marinate.
2. Add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of your Una Casa tagine pot.
3. Place the marinated chicken into the tagine, flesh-side down, and scatter with finely chopped onions.
4. Sprinkle over olives and preserved lemon quarters and drizzle with olive oil.
5. Add ¼ cup of water and cover, placing on medium-low heat and simmering for 80-90 minutes, undisturbed.
6. Turn the chicken flesh-up and cook for another 45 minutes – 1 hour.
7. Leave the tagine to rest for 10-15 minutes before serving.

2. Traditional Lamb Tagine

Traditional Moroccan tagines often use lamb as it’s a delicious and affordable meat that cooks beautifully in a slow dish. This recipe is ready in 2 hours 30 minutes (plus marinating time) to create beautifully tender lamb chunks in an incredibly flavorsome meal.

Ingredients: 

• Olive oil
• 1kg Lamb neck fillet (cut into chunks)
• 2 onions (halved and thinly sliced)
• 3cm piece of ginger (finely grated)
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 350ml chicken stock
• 10 cherry tomatoes
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 10 ready-to-eat dates (halved)
• 10 green olives (halved and deseeded)
• Prepared couscous
• Fresh coriander (to serve)

Marinade Ingredients: 

• 1 bunch coriander (finely chopped)
• 2 tsp hot smoked paprika
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 lemons (juiced)
• 2 garlic cloves (crushed)

Method: 

1. Mix together the marinade ingredients with 1 tbsp olive oil and salt and pepper to taste, then toss with the lamb. Cover and chill for 2 hours – preferably overnight.
2. Place a splash of olive oil in a large pan and cook onion until soft before adding ginger and cooking for a further minute.
3. Add the marinated lamb and the sauce to onions and ginger and cook, stirring regularly, for 5-10 minutes.
4. Add tomato puree, chicken stock, tomatoes, cinnamon, dates, and olives. Bring to a simmer and cover for 2 hours.
5. Serve with couscous and coriander leaves to garnish.

3. Vegan Squash and Sweet Potato Tagine

When the weather cools off, we love rich dishes filled with seasonal root veggies. This gorgeous tagine utilizes fabulous fall colors to create a rich and flavorsome meal that takes just over 1 hour from start to finish – perfect for when you can’t be bothered with cooking! You won’t even notice it’s vegan-friendly! 

Ingredients: 

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion (finely chopped)
• 2 garlic cloves (chopped or pressed)
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tbsp rose harissa
• 1 small bunch fresh coriander
• 500g butternut squash (peeled and diced)
• 300g sweet potato (peeled and diced)
• 2x cans cherry tomatoes
• 2 preserved lemons (flesh and seeds discarded, skin finely chopped)
• 75g sultanas
• 240g couscous
• 200g green beans (chopped)

Method: 

1. Heat the olive oil in your tagine pot or Dutch oven on medium heat and cook onions until soft.
2. Add garlic, ground spices, rose harissa, and coriander stalks and cook for 2 minutes.
3. Add squash, sweet potato, tomatoes, lemon, and sultanas with 600ml water and bring to the boil before simmering gently for 1 hour.
4. In the meantime, prepare the couscous and place to one side.
5. Stir the beans into the Dutch oven and simmer for another 2-3 minutes before seasoning and serving with the couscous and coriander leaves.