Moroccan chicken & chickpea tagine

• 500gChicken thigh fillets
• 1Brown onion
• 2Carrots
• 3 clovesGarlic, crushed
• 20gFresh ginger, grated
• 2 tbspOlive oil
• 2 tspGround cumin
• 1 tspGround coriander
• 1 tspGround cinnamon
• 1 tspGround turmeric
• 1 tinChopped tomatoes
• 1 tinChickpeas, drained
• 1 cubeChicken stock cube, made up to 300ml
• 50gRaisins
• 1 tbspClear honey
• 1Lemon
• 30gFresh coriander
• 250gCouscous, make on the day

Plus salt, pepper and water.

Method

1. 1

   Cut the chicken into large chunks and season with salt and pepper. Finely chop the onion, peel and thickly slice the carrots, crush the garlic and grate the ginger.

2. 2

   Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large casserole or deep lidded pan over a medium-high heat. Brown the chicken in two batches for about 4 minutes each, until golden all over, then lift onto a plate.

3. 3

   Turn the heat down, add the onion and carrots and cook for 8 minutes, until the onion is soft and golden. Stir in the garlic, ginger, cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon and turmeric for a minute, until fragrant.

4. 4

   Crumble the stock cube into 300ml boiling water and add it to the pan with the tomatoes, chickpeas, raisins, honey and the finely grated zest of the lemon. Return the chicken and any juices and bring to the boil.

5. 5

   Cover and simmer gently for 30 minutes, stirring now and then, until the chicken is tender and cooked through and the sauce has thickened. Take the lid off for the last 10 minutes if it still looks thin.

   32 min, mostly hands-off

6. 6

   Squeeze in the lemon juice and season to taste. Serve, or leave to cool and portion into tubs, keeping the coriander for the day.