Vegan tagine

vegetables | Moroccan-style vegetable tagine

Serves 2 or 4 if serving with skewers or cous cous etc.

This is a gorgeously tasty savoury dish, which is bursting with delicious vegetables. It's based on a meal I had in a lovely restaurant in Canterbury, which was so delicious that I was determined to try and make something like it - and after some prolonged tinkering and artistic licence, I think this version is pretty good! It doesn’t use preserved lemons, which you might find in a tagine, because it’s not something we thought people might find or use again easily.

Wheat free, dairy free, nut free, meat free version...

Ingredients...

2 tsp of oil - argan oil is often used in tagines, and I did manage to find one in Sainsbury's, but don't worry if you don't have this.
Tbsp oil
2 red onions, roughly sliced
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
½ butternut squash, chopped into inch cubes
2-3 carrots chopped into chunks
2 tsp of finely chopped red chilli (I tend to chop a few chillis at a time and put them in a jar, covered with oil, in the fridge)
2 dessert spoons of tomato puree
1 can of chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 handfuls of baby potatoes or chunks
2 inches of stem ginger, chopped finely (I use the one sold in syrup)
2 tsp syrup (from stem ginger)
2 handfuls of green Helda stringless beans (chop the beans into thirds)
1 tsp each of cinnamon, cardamom pods, cumin and garam masala.
Tip tsp of cayenne pepper
Pinch of saffron if you have it
Good squeeze of lemon juice
1 pint (560ml) water
4 tsp vegetable bouillon

Method...

Heat the oven to 170°C
Roast the squash and carrot for 20-25 minutes on a baking tray with the tbsp of oil.
Sauté the onions in the 2tsp oil in a large saucepan for a few minutes.
Add the garlic, chilli and then spices and cook for 2 minutes or so.
Add the water, bouillon, puree, potatoes and ginger and cook for 20 minutes
Take the roast squash and carrots out and add to the saucepan.
Add the chickpeas and beans and cook for 5 minutes or so.
Add the syrup and lemon juice and stir through
Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Maybe serve with...

You can either serve this as a stew in a bowl, or you can strain out the vegetables onto a bed of rice or quinoa and serve the sauce in a separate jug.

For those who can eat wheat...

Serve vegetables on a bed of cous cous and drizzle the sauce over - yum!

If you have leftover cous cous, ginger and syrup, see the mango and pepper boats. If you have leftover squash, see the 'nude' roasted squash and red onion medley. For leftover chickpeas, see the lightly spiced chickpea burgers. If you have leftover stem ginger, see the mini no-bake cheesecakes.

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