Moroccan Chicken

After experimenting with my Wonderbag for a few months, now, I have determined that chicken, specifically dark meat or bone-in chicken is the most wonderful meat to slow cook for hours. I've made successful beef and pork roasts, but chicken slow-cooked with vegetables and spices typically turns out the most delicious and the most tender. As a result, I'm sharing with you a recipe with a similar idea to the previous one, though definitely different in flavor.

This recipe was definitely an impulse meal, and as such, I didn't really measure any ingredients. It turned out fantastically, and was actually surprisingly easy to make. For such a small time commitment, it was a delicious result.

Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup chopped onion
- 1/3 cup chopped bell pepper
- 1/4 cup chopped celery
- 6-8 chicken legs
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 large, or 2 small, diced potatoes
- About 1 cup chicken broth
- Ginger
- Cumin
- Turmeric
- Coriander
- Paprika
- Fennel seeds
- About 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Honey
- About 1/2 cup raisins
- About 1/3 cup roasted chopped (or slivered) almonds

I started by chopping up about half an onion and some bell peppers and sauteeing them in some olive oil with all the spices--ginger, cumin, turmeric, coriander, fennel seeds, and paprika--about 1 teaspoon of each, except for the paprika, of which I used about 2 tablespoons. Once the onions and peppers were soft and had soaked up a good amount of spices and olive oil, I added the chicken, and browned it on both sides. Then I added the can of tomatoes and the chicken broth, as well as the lemon juice. I then waited until the stew had started to simmer, and added in the potatoes, making sure that all the chicken and vegetables were covered completely with the sauce. I let that simmer for about 15 minutes, and then stuck it in the bag! The chicken was so tender that it started to fall off the bone before it even went into the Wonderbag.

Moroccan chicken pre-Wonderbag!

I let my stew (or tagine, if we're really trying to channel Morocco) cook away in the Wonderbag for about three hours. Though I didn't keep it in there for very long, this would be a great dish to prepare pre-work and come home to eat! The flavors will only intensify, and the chicken will only get more tender, and what's not to love about that?! Just before removing my pot from the Wonderbag, I cooked up a mixture of grains to serve under the stew, including quinoa, barley, baby garbanzo beans, orzo, and Israeli couscous. I topped the whole mess off with a large dollop of plain Greek yogurt, which helps to off-set the slight spiciness of the dish, and makes the remaining sauce slightly creamy. 

Moroccan chicken over a five-grain blend, topped with Greek yogurt.

If you're going to be serving a wine with this dish, I recommend something light, white, and slightly sweet. I paired my chicken with a Vouvray (a French white wine made from 100% Chenin Blanc grapes) but a lightly sweet Riesling, Gewurtztraminer, or even Sauvignon Blanc would be tasty. A slightly sweet, chilled, white wine will help to balance the inherent spice in the dish, and will be crisp and refreshing.

Bon appétit, or, as they say in Morocco, بالصحة ! 

(I'm not going to lie, I just googled that. If you're wondering how to pronounce the Arabic, it's apparently "besseha." Ah, the wonders of Google.)

(Note: This dish can easily be made in a crock pot or slow cooker if you don't have a Wonderbag.)