Richmond Times Dispatch
BY CLARE OSDENE SCHAPIRO
I adore traveling, and nothing pleases me more than eating local fare in exotic climes. I’ve noticed that even vicarious thrills provided by loved ones’ adventures compel me to don my culinary traveling shoes. I leap headlong into cooking vernacular cuisine from places I’ve never been, nor expect to explore myself.
Such is the case with my recent obsession with Moroccan food. I’m not headed to the Casbah, though my son, Felix, has it on the itinerary of his current around-the-world voyage. In fact, his journey emboldened me to delve into a world of cooking I’ve never fully explored before.
Morocco is a crossroads of North Africa, creating a particularly appealing fusion of cuisines: Mediterranean, European, Moorish, even Sephardic. The resulting “stew” is a spicy blend that’s healthy, primarily relying on fruits, vegetables and grains, and enlivened by meat – often more as a flavoring than main ingredient.
That alone has transformed my kitchen into a bazaar replete with saffron, cinnamon, mint and ginger; lamb, olives and apricots; preserved lemons and couscous galore. The scents, not to mention the irresistibly lively tastes I’ve been creating, have been enough to banish winter doldrums and successfully conjure Casablanca on the James.
Probably the most famous dish of Morocco is tagine: a spicy mélange of vegetables and, sometimes, meat. Tagine refers to both the concoction and the pot in which it is traditionally cooked. An earthenware dish with a conical top does the job authentically. However, I’ve experimented with an actual tagine and a relatively shallow enameled lidded pot. I’ve found them equally good in creating the desired effect. The conical top was designed to capture and recirculate the treasured juices in the arid desert setting. I can easily make a superb tagine on the top of the stove or in the oven by braising in sparse liquid, very slowly over low heat, allowing the flavors to meld.
I’ve been experimenting with many tagines: vegetable, chicken and lamb. I am happy to report that once you’ve got the method down, you can happily putter away, tossing in anything that strikes your fancy. Most tagines use a Ras El Hanout or “head of the shop,” which is a complex spice blend, idiosyncratically created by each cook. This recipe for my very own Ras El Hanout is used in this cinnamon-rich tagine, which pairs spring lamb with apricots and preserved lemons.
And speaking of preserved lemons: I have hugely enjoyed making them on my metaphorical trip to North Africa. This very easy pickling process preserves lemons in salt and their own juices. Proper preserved lemons make a singular addition to tagines or other North African or Middle Eastern foods you might decide to try. Please note you’ll need at least two and preferably three weeks to allow them to undergo the alchemy that turns them into bright-yellow culinary gold.
I made mine using Meyer lemons, which I’ve found in great abundance this year. Slightly sweeter and less acidic than regular lemons, and with thinner skin, they really shine in this recipe. I made some plain and some with the addition of bay leaves and whole coriander seeds. They weren’t difficult to prepare and demand only the requisite time for them to do their thing. The good news is they’ll last in your fridge for at least six months, enabling you to add a lively zing to all sorts of dishes – from vegetables to seafood.
To use them, simply remove the lemon from the jar, rinse off the salt, remove the seeds (and the pulp if you wish), and chop the rind for use as a sunny treat. I found that it’s best to incorporate the preserved lemon into the dish at the very end, or even serve it completely raw on the side as a great condiment.
If you’re in a pinch and want to make faux preserved lemons in less than an hour, I demonstrate how to do that in my video today on TimesDispatch.com. Having tasted both, my advice is to make faux preserved lemons to get you through until your real ones are ready. If you’re like me, preserved lemons are about to be your new favorite thing.
Finally, I don’t think there’s anything quite as Moroccan as couscous, a delicious and versatile semolina pasta. Most of the couscous you buy in this country has been previously steamed and is therefore prepared very quickly by combining it with boiling water or broth and a little olive oil. It’s the perfect quick accompaniment for tagine, and makes a great base for any manner of warm-weather salads, paired, for example, with the vegetables you have at hand, olive oil and your great preserved lemons.
Looking for just a little vibe of Morocco to enliven any weeknight’s dinner? Consider this recipe for a slightly more exotic, albeit quick, couscous dish studded with currants and almonds. I’ve found it to be a delicious accompaniment for anything from salmon to chicken.
I have certainly loved my first foray into the exuberant cuisine of Morocco. As Humphrey Bogart says in Casablanca, “I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.”
Clare Osdene Schapiro contributes monthly features to the Food section, accompanied by videos for TimesDispatch.com. Among the many people who benefit from her culinary adventures are her husband, Jeff, the Times-Dispatch’s political columnist, and son, Felix. Contact her at Clare.Schapiro@gmail.com, read her blog at www.Clarefare.com or follow her on Facebook at Clare’s Kitchen.
