Mrouzia (Moroccan Tagine)

Unbelievably tender meat cooked with beautifully balanced spices and dried fruit for a complex, sweet and savory dish

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City/Region: Morocco

Time Period: 14th Century

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Tagine is not necessarily a specific dish, but anything that’s cooked inside of a tagine (kind of like how a casserole can be anything cooked in a casserole dish). A tagine is basically a conical earthenware portable oven, perfect for the nomadic Amazigh (or Berbers). This 14th century recipe is absolutely delicious, like everything I ate when I went to Morocco. Wanderlust Voyages set up an amazing trip for me that was focused on food and history. I highly recommend them!

Recreating the recipe for this dish was made infinitely easier by using Nawal Nasrallah’s translation, which converted medieval measurements into modern ones.

“Fry the meat with spices, and when it is done, add to it 1 1/2 ratls water. When the water boils, chop the onions and wash them, once in salted water and once with water. Add them to the meat and leave to boil until the onion is half cooked. Add the dried plums which have been soaked in water, then add the raisins and jujubes in the same manner. Let them cook until the raisins and plums are done. If you wish, add three ūqiyyas sugar, and let it boil. Next add saffron dissolved in water, let it boil and then add vinegar. When the pot has boiled for a while, add in the mint and atraf al-tib and allow to simmer. ”

— Kanz al-Fawā’id fī Tanwī al-Mawā’id (Treasure Trove of Benefits and Variety at the Table)

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Ingredients:

• 2/3 teaspoon saffron
• 3 tablespoons (44 ml) warm water
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ras el hanout*
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• A large pinch of salt
• 3 tablespoons (44 ml) water
• 1 1/2 pounds (680 g) meat cut into large pieces, lamb is most common, but beef and chicken are also used
• Olive oil or clarified butter
• 3 cups (710 ml) hot water
• 4 ounces (115 g) prunes
• 1 3/4 cup (225 g) diced onion
• 1/2 cup (70 g) raisins
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) white wine vinegar, or honey vinegar* like I used if you can find it
• 45 g dried jujubes
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried mint
• 1 teaspoon atraf al-tib, or another Middle Eastern or North African spice blend like ras el hanout
• 1/3 cup (85 g) sugar or honey

*See notes below.

Instructions:

1. Steep the saffron threads in 3 tablespoons of warm water for 30 minutes, then strain and reserve the water.
2. Mix the turmeric, ras el hanout, ginger, cinnamon, coriander, black pepper, and salt. Add 3 tablespoons of the water and mix to make a marinade. Add the meat, turning to make sure each piece is completely coated, then leave to marinate for 20 minutes.
3. Heat a large pot or tagine over medium-high, then add a small amount of the olive oil or clarified butter, just enough to coat the bottom. Add the meat and brown on both sides, then add the 3 cups of hot water. Lower the heat to medium and cover the pot. Simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Add the onions, then cover and cook for 10 minutes.
5. While it cooks, soak the prunes, raisins, and jujubes in hot water for 10 minutes.
6. Strain the fruit and add it to the tagine along with the sugar, vinegar, and saffron water. Bring back to a simmer and cook for a couple of minutes, then add the atraf al-tib and mint.
7. Lower the heat to your stove’s lowest setting, cover, and cook until the meat is very tender, about 1 hour. Stir occasionally to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom, but try to not let out all of the steam when you do so.
8. Transfer to a fancy serving tagine if you wish, garnish with sesame seeds and sliced almonds (this is optional and a more modern touch), and serve it forth.

Notes

• Each shop or vendor has their own version of ras el hanout, which means "head of the shop" or "top shelf". It's often made of at least a dozen spices like cardamom, cumin, allspice, nutmeg, and pepper.

• How to make honey vinegar was included in the texts, and my local Middle Eastern market had some, so I used it. Check out your local market or click the link below.

• Link to ras el hanout: https://amzn.to/3YaJn7s
• Link to honey vinegar: https://amzn.to/3q6Hs7i

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