If you’re looking for an easy and affordable Christmas dinner alternative, this Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and apricots might be just what you need. Packed with dried fruit and delicately spiced with a hint of festive cinnamon, this flavourful dish ticks all the boxes.
With the rising cost of groceries, many of us are feeling the pinch this Christmas. But a low-cost meal can still be special and delicious. What’s more, this Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and apricots suits a variety of dietary needs. Whether you’re keeping things low carb, gluten or dairy-free, or simply trying to avoid processed food, this recipe has you covered!
This recipe is designed to be served as part of my Affordable Christmas Dinner Menu: Low-Carb, Gluten and Dairy-Free. Check out my Creamy White Bean Soup with Roasted Garlic and Bacon as a starter and this stunning Sugar Free Raspberry Sorbet for dessert.
Get Organised this Christmas and Make Dinner in Advance!
I don’t know if you’re like me, but I find that Christmas can be pretty stressful, especially when there is a crowd coming over for dinner. One of the ways I combat this is to prepare as much as I can in advance. This Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and apricots is a perfect dish to cook ahead of time. You can make it on Christmas Eve and then, before your guests arrive on Christmas day, pop it in the oven and it will be piping hot right in time for the meal to start. As with many recipes like this, the flavours develop when it is cooled down and then reheated, so you have nothing to lose!
Ingredients Needed to Make Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and apricots
- 8 chicken legs (thigh and drumstick) skin on, bone in
- 1 400 ml can tomatoes
- 1 onion, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- 12 prunes
- 12 dried apricots
- 500 ml chicken stock
- 2 tsp Ras El Hanout
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oil to fry
- Grilled almonds and coriander to garnish (optional)
- Couscous and/or butternut squash to serve
Chicken Legs
I like to use cuts of chicken that have the skin on and bone in for several reasons.
- These cuts tend to be significantly cheaper
- The skin and bones add a lot a flavour to the sauce
- The meat is perfectly tender
- The meal can be cooked for a long time without the meat going dry. This gives all of the flavours a chance to develop.
Tomatoes
I like to get good quality tinned tomatoes. Since they are the base of the sauce, it is really important to get the best quality you can. Check the percentage of tomates contained in the tin and go for the brand that has 90% tomatoes or more. Trust me, it will be well worth the extra pennies spent.
Dried Fruit
There are many different dried fruits you can use to make this tagine but I like prunes and dried apricot best. Make sure you buy fruit that does not have added sugar. This is especially important if you, or one of your guests, is on a low-carb diet.
Chicken Stock
As always, I strongly encourage you to make your own. It is so simple, so cheap and so good for you. Check out my recipe here.
Spices
This recipe, while not a traditional tagine, features the classic Moroccan spice blend: Ras El Hanout. This is a blend that varies from shop to shop. In Morocco, spice vendors will make their own blends so the flavours vary significantly depending on where you bought your Ras El Hanout from. I love the gentle spice it brings to this dish and I add some cinnamon for extra warmth, sweetness and festive feel.
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How to Make Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and dried apricots
This is a very simple dish to make, which is another reason I love it so much!
Fry the Chicken
In a large frying pan, brown the chicken portions in batches of 3-4 depending on the size of your chicken and the size of your frying pan. Turn the chicken over after 3-5 mins or when browed to your liking. Sprinkle each chicken portion with a little bit of salt and ground black pepper.
When the chicken is brown on both sides, remove from the pan and place on a plate while you brown the rest of the chicken and make the sauce.
Make the Sauce
When all of your chicken is browned, remove some of the fat from the pan and fry the onion in the remaining fat. When just soft and translucent, add the crushed garlic and spices. Fry gently for 1 min.
This is a good time to turn the oven on to preheat at 180°C.
Add the tomatoes to the pan, with 1/4 tin of water, bring to the boil and then allow to simmer for 10 mins until the sauce has thickened and slightly caramelised.
Add the dried fruit, chicken stock or bone broth and 1 tsp of salt. Bring to the boil.
When the sauce is boiling, pour it into a 23x33cm oven proof dish and place the chicken on top so that as much of the skin is exposed as possible.
Bake the Tagine
Cover with aluminium foil and bake for 30 mins.
After 30 mins, remove the aluminium foil, turn the oven up to 220°C and continue baking for 15 more minutes.
Garnish with chopped coriander and grilled almonds if desired. Serve hot with couscous or with roasted butternut squash if you are keeping it gluten-free or low-carb.
Roasted Butternut Squash
Roasted butternut squash is the perfect accompaniment to this dish, especially for those wanting to cut carbs or gluten.
Simply peel a butternut squash or two and cut it into 1.5 cm cubes, place on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. If you put the butternut squash in the oven at the same time as the chicken, then everything will be ready at the same time.
I suggest using 2 average size butternut squash if you are not serving couscous with this dish.
Making Ahead and Reheating Tips for the Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and dried apricots
If you want to get organised before the big day, make the chicken tagine the day before. Cover with foil, leave it to cool and then place in the fridge overnight.
The next day, preheat your oven to 180°C. Warm your chicken tagine up in the oven, covered, for about an hour. Always check to make sure the chicken is nice and hot all the way through before serving.
I suggest making the butternut squash and couscous right before serving as they do not warm up as well. The butternut squash will cook in the oven with the chicken for at least 45 mins at 180°C.
How to Serve this Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and dried apricots
I like to serve my Christmas Tagine with roasted butternut squash. Since I serve it as part of my Affordable Christmas Dinner Menu, the starter (Creamy White Bean Soup) is quite filling, so I don’t think there is a need for carbs with the main dish.
Having said that, this tagine goes very well with couscous or rice and we have eaten it on different occasions with both.
For an added touch of colour and flavour, I like to garnish my tagine with some chopped coriander and grilled almonds. To grill the almonds, heat whole almonds for a few minutes in a dry pan. Watch them closely as they burn quickly. These garnishes are totally optional, especially as they will increase the overall price of the dish.
To turn this tagine into a centrepiece for your Christmas table, serve it in a beautiful oven dish or, if you have one, a traditional Moroccan tagine. Add the garnishes directly to the dish and let everyone enjoy the beautiful, colourful meal you’ve created.
How Much Does it Cost to Make this Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and dried apricots?
The approximate price of this dish without the accompaniment is 17 € total, which comes out as 2.12 € per person. Cost will obviously vary depending on the ingredients you buy. I have based my prices on middle-range brands that I know to still be good quality. The chicken is the element that is the most costly, but I do believe that it is always a good idea to buy the best quality meat you can afford.
Couscous would be a cheaper option to serve, coming in at 2.33 € per person total and serving with roasted butternut would increase the cost to around 2.60 € total per person.
If you were to garnish with almonds and coriander, this would increase the cost again.
So, are you ready to mix things up a bit this holiday season and serve a Christmas Chicken Tagine with prunes and dried apricots instead of a more traditional option? Let me know in the comments if you do, I love to hear from you!
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Christmas Chicken Tagine with Prunes and Apricots
Ingredients
- 8 chicken legs thigh and drumstick skin on, bone in
- 1 400 ml can tomatoes
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic crushed
- 12 prunes
- 12 dried apricots
- 500 ml chicken stock
- 2 tsp Ras El Hanout
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Olive oil to fry
- Grilled almonds and coriander to garnish optional
- Couscous and/or butternut squash to serve
Instructions
Fry the Chicken
- In a large frying pan, brown the chicken portions in batches of 3-4 depending on the size of your chicken and the size of your frying pan. Turn the chicken over after 3-5 mins or when browed to your liking. Sprinkle each chicken portion with a little bit of salt and ground black pepper.
- When the chicken is brown on both sides, remove from the pan and place on a plate while you brown the rest of the chicken and make the sauce.
Make the Sauce
- When all of your chicken is browned, remove some of the fat from the pan and fry the onion in the remaining fat. When just soft and translucent, add the crushed garlic and spices. Fry gently for 1 min.
- Turn the oven on to preheat at 180°C.
- Add the tomatoes to the pan, with 1/4 tin of water, bring to the boil and then allow to simmer for 10 mins until the sauce has thickened and slightly caramelised.
- Add the dried fruit, chicken stock or bone broth and 1 tsp of salt. Bring to the boil.
- When the sauce is boiling, pour it into a 23x33cm oven proof dish and place the chicken on top so that as much of the skin is exposed as possible.
Bake the Tagine
- Cover with aluminium foil and bake for 30 mins.
- After 30 min, remove the aluminium foil, turn the oven up to 220°C and continue baking for 15 more minutes.
- Garnish with chopped coriander and grilled almonds if desired. Serve hot with couscous or with roasted butternut squash if you are keeping it gluten-free or low-carb.
Roasted Butternut Squash
- Roasted butternut squash is the perfect accompaniment to this dish, especially for those wanting to cut carbs or gluten.
- Simply peel a butternut squash or two and cut it into 1.5cm cubes, place on a baking tray, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. If you put the butternut squash in the oven at the same time as the chicken, then everything will be ready at the same time.
- I suggest using 2 average size butternut squash if you are not serving couscous with this dish.
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