Chicken Tagine with Jewelled Bulgur Wheat

This is a really flavoursome dish that has a great mixture of textures with the crunch of the almonds and juiciness of the pomegranate. It works well for a midweek tea or as a dinner party dish.

DIFFICULTY: 3/5

Serves 4

Chicken Tagine:

• 4 Skinless & Boneless Chicken Thighs
• 1 Large Carrot
• 1 Onion
• 2 Garlic Cloves
• 1 thumb-sized piece of Ginger
• 12 Dried Apricots
• 1tbsp Raisins
• Handful Whole Blanched Almonds
• 3 Queen Green Olives (or 9 small olives)
• Bunch of Flat Leaf Parsley
• 1tbsp Runny Honey
• 1tbsp Lemon Juice
• 2tsp Ras-El-Hanout
• 1tsp Harissa
• 1tsp Turmeric
• ½ tsp Saffron
• 1tsp Cinnamon
• 1 Preserved Lemon
• 650ml Vegetable Stock
• Salt and Pepper to Season 

Jewelled Bulgur Wheat:

• 120g Bulgur Wheat
• Bunch of Flat Leaf Parsley
• Bunch of Mint
• Juice and Zest of ½ Lemon
• ½ Pomegranate
• Salt & Pepper to season 

10minutes to prepare and 1 hour to cook on the hob

1. Peel and slice the carrot and place in a pan of boiling water and cook on a medium heat on the hob for around 5minutes until the carrot starts to soften. Drain and set aside.
2. Finely chop the onion, garlic, ginger, preserved lemon and parsley, cut the apricots into quarters and slice the olives. Steep the saffron threads in a small dish of water and leave to infuse. 
3. Heat the olive oil in a lidded frying pan (leave the lid off for now) and add the chicken thighs when hot. Cook on both sides for a few minutes before adding the onion, garlic and ginger. Stir everything together and cook for around 5minutes until the onions have softened.
4. Add the honey, preserved lemon and spices to the pan and coat all the ingredients then continue to cook for a couple of minutes before adding the stock. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer before placing the lid on the pan. 
5. After around 20minutes the sauce should have started to thicken. Add the carrots, apricots, raisins, olives, almonds, lemon and parsley and stir everything together.
6. Taste the sauce and add the seasoning before putting the lid back on the pan for another 15-20minutes until the sauce has thickened.
7. During the last stage of cooking, put the bulgar wheat in a pan of boiling water on a medium heat on the hob and cook for around 5minutes until the grains are soft. Drain and set aside.
8. Finely chop the parsley and mint, zest the lemon and place the pomegranate seeds in a bowl.
9. When the tagine is ready turn off the heat and add the herbs, lemon, pomegranate and seasoning to the bulgur wheat and stir together.
10. Serve with the tagine, sprinkling a little chopped parsley over the top.