Moroccan · Tagines
Chicken Tagine with Fennel & Olives
Along the Rabat coast, where wild fennel grows close to the Atlantic, cooks braise chicken with sliced fennel bulb until it turns silky and faintly aniseed, balanced by briny olives and a squeeze of lemon. It is a lighter tagine than most, leaning on fennel's sweetness rather than heavy spice.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 60 min
- Total
- 80 min
- Serves
- 4
- Level
- Medium
Ingredients
- 1.2 kg chicken pieces, skin on
- 2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and sliced into wedges (fronds reserved)
- 1 onion, sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, crushed
- Pinch of saffron, bloomed, and 1 tsp ground ginger
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 120 g green olives, rinsed
- 4 tbsp olive oil, salt and pepper
Method
- 1
Brown the chicken
Warm the oil in a tagine or heavy pot and brown the chicken pieces on both sides, then set aside.
- 2
Build the base
Soften the onion and garlic in the same pot, stir in the ginger, saffron water and pepper, then return the chicken.
- 3
Add the fennel
Tuck the fennel wedges around the chicken, add about 200 ml water and the lemon juice, cover and simmer gently 40–45 minutes until the chicken is cooked through and the fennel is soft.
- 4
Finish
Stir in the olives and cook a further 8–10 minutes, uncovered, to let the sauce reduce slightly.
- 5
Serve
Scatter with the reserved fennel fronds and serve with bread or plain couscous.
Chef's tips
- Slice the fennel into thick wedges rather than thin strips so it holds together through the braise.
- Rinse the olives before adding them to keep the sauce from turning overly salty.
- Reserve a few fennel fronds to scatter on top — they echo the aniseed note and add fresh colour.
Frequently asked questions
What do olives to use work best?
Green or violet Moroccan olives are traditional; avoid pitted supermarket olives packed in strong brine, which can taste flat by comparison.
Can this be made with chicken breast?
Thighs and drumsticks hold up far better over the braise; breast meat tends to dry out before the fennel is fully tender.