Braised Chicken With Dates And Moroccan Spices Recipes

CHICKEN WITH DATES AND MOROCCAN SPICES

Steps:

• Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt, pepper, and flour. Heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat.
• Add half of chicken pieces to pot and cook until browned on all sides, turning occasionally, about 10 minutes. Transfer chicken to baking sheet or platter; repeat with remaining chicken.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from pot and discard. Reduce heat to medium. Add shallots to pot; saute until golden, about 6 minutes.
• Add cinnamon sticks, ginger, cumin, turmeric, and cayenne. Stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Increase heat to high; add broth and 3 tablespoons lemon juice. Bring to boil; reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until shallots begin to soften, about 18 minutes.
• Place chicken pieces atop shallots in pot. Bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until juices run clear when thickest part of drumstick is pierced with knife, about 25 minutes.
• Transfer chicken and shallots to platter; tent with foil. Boil juices in pot until slightly thickened. Stir in dates and remaining 2 tablespoons lemon juice.
• Reduce heat and simmer gently until dates are heated through, about 2 minutes. Pour sauce and dates over chicken. Sprinkle with almonds and cilantro, serve.

MOROCCAN BRAISED CHICKEN LEGS AND THIGHS WITH CARROT JUICE, DATE

Steps:

• Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Season the chicken pieces generously with salt and pepper. Using a 10-11" straight side ovenproof saute pan with a lid, heat the oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Arrange the chicken skin side down in the pan (it'll be crowded), and cook until deeply brown, about 5 minutes. Use a splatter screen if you have one). Turn the pieces over and cook until the other sides are deeply browned, 3 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to plate.
• Pour out and discard all but 1 tablespoon of the fat in the pan. Put the pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring frequestly, until it's soft and begins to color, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Add the ginger, cinnamon, and cumin and stir into the onions for about 1 minute.
• Pour in the carrot juice and broth and bring to a boil, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon.
• return the chicken to the pan. Cover, transfer to the oven and braise for 15 minutes.
• Add the dates and continue to braise until the chicken is fork-tender and the drumstick meatstarts to come away from the bone, 30 to 35 minutes more.
• With a slotted spoon, transfer the chicken and the dates to a serving dish and keep warm by loosely covering the dish with foil.
• Tilt the saute pan and skim off as much fat as possible from the sauce.
• Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat, reduce the heat to medium low, and simmer until the sauce is slightly thickened, abouth 5 minutes.
• Add the lemon juice and season to taste.
• Pour the sauce over the chicken, sprinkle with the chopped cilantro and serve.