Vegetable tagine with almond and chickpea couscous – an easy, healthy vegetarian/vegan meal with tonnes of flavour. Post sponsored by Appletiser.
Various types of vegetable soups and stews feature heavily in my kitchen during the winter. This tagine is one of my favourites as it feels more rich and special than a regular stew and has a really wonderful sweet/spicy flavour.
When Appletiser challenged me to come up with a recipe to fit the theme of ‘cosy midweek supper club’, I knew that this vegetable tagine would be perfect.
It is warming and hearty – just right for a chilly November, it’s very easy and economical to make so is not too much effort to cook after work, and when served alongside the almond and chickpea couscous it is a very impressive and satisfying meal that would be just as good to serve at a supper club as it would be for a regular weeknight dinner.
The slightly sweet, warmingly spiced flavour pairs perfectly with Appletiser; the tagine contains cinnamon and apricots – both flavours that work perfectly with apple, and because this is a midweek supper club, Appletiser is the perfect choice to serve instead of wine!
Now I can’t claim that this is an authentic tagine recipe, in particular because it isn’t actually cooked in a tagine (because who has room in their kitchen for a tagine pot?!); but it does taste fantastic.
The crunch of the toasted almonds in the couscous provides a lovely textural contrast against the soft vegetables, and the dried apricots and dash of honey/agave perfectly balance out the spices.
The only real work that is required is chopping the vegetables, so this is a pretty low-effort meal, and the leftovers keep really well for a a few days.
You can also vary the vegetables that you use to suit; just make sure that you keep the pieces fairly chunky when you chop them up so that they don’t lose their shape and fall apart when cooked.
More Hearty Vegetable Recipes:
- Red lentil dhal with roasted cauliflower and butternut squash
- Sweet potato black bean chilli
- Spiced red lentil and root vegetable soup
- Spiced roast pumpkin soup
- Spiced yellow split pea and sweetcorn soup
Vegetable Tagine With Almond and Chickpea Couscous Recipe:
Vegetable Tagine With Almond And Chickpea Couscous.
Ingredients
Vegetable Tagine:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 red onion peeled and sliced
- 1 medium aubergine (eggplant) diced
- 2 large carrots sliced into rounds
- 1 red bell pepper cut into large dice
- 1 yellow bell pepper cut into large dice
- 1 small butternut squash peeled, de-seeded and cut into large dice
- 1 courgette (zucchini) sliced into rounds
- 5 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 Tbsp tomato purée
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 2 Tbsp harissa paste
- 1 Tbsp honey/agave nectar
- 1 400 g (14oz) tin chopped tomatoes
- 400 ml (1 + 2/3 cup) vegetable stock
- 10 dried apricots halved
- small handful fresh mint finely chopped
- salt and pepper
Almond And Chickpea Couscous:
- 300 g (10.5 oz) dried couscous
- 480 ml (2 cups) hot vegetable stock
- 1 400 g (14 oz) tin chickpeas rinsed and drained
- 2 Tbsp harissa paste
- juice of 1 lemon
- large handful toasted flaked almonds
- salt and pepper
Instructions
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To make the tagine, heat the olive oil in a large, wide pan over a medium heat; add the onion, aubergine, carrots, peppers, butternut squash and courgette. Cook, stirring regularly, for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables have started to soften and are lightly browned.
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Add the garlic, tomato purée, coriander, cumin, cinnamon and turmeric and cook for 2 more minutes whilst stirring.
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Add the harissa, honey, chopped tomatoes, vegetable stock and apricots. Give it a good stir then put the lid on the pan, turn the heat down to low and leave to cook gently for about 45 minutes to 1 hour until all of the vegetables have softened.
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Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in a handful of chopped mint.
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To make the couscous, place the dry couscous in a large bowl; add the vegetable stock, chickpeas and harissa and give it a stir. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and leave for 15 minutes.
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Add the lemon juice to taste, some toasted flaked almonds and salt and pepper to taste.
This post is sponsored by Appletiser, thank you for supporting the brands that allow me to continue doing what I love – playing with food and making a mess of my kitchen.
You know, I’ve never made a tagine. I think this one would be a good place to start, it sounds delicious.
Katie xoxo
I love how many vegetables you have managed to pack in to this. Proper comfort food.
Such wonderful flavors! I love the addition of all those vegetables. So perfect for pairing with the couscous. Yum!
I never tried making tangible!
BUT reading this article and recipe I feel o should try this dish
This dish looks very healthy and delicious
What a gorgeous vegetable tagine! Love the colours. It sounds super flavourful and hearty too. Perfect for the chilly days.
I’ve been fascinated with Tagine for a while already (I guess since I started following food blogs) but I have never made one yet. Yours looks amazing!
Mmm, this looks like my PERFECT cold weather meal! And you’ve just reminded me that it’s been way too long since I last had a tagine 🙂
What a bloody brilliant idea, I’ve used regular apple juice in stews before but not thought of using Appletiser. And yes, the flavours of a tagine are so comforting at this time of year!
This is a perfect dish which combines some nutrient-dense ingredients, Hannah! Excellent dish for the upcoming cold days. Can I also add a bit of yellow onion in addition to the red one?
Best veggie tagine dish I have made! Lovely flavours- warm without being too hot.
Great mix of vegetables too, really tasty. I made mine in a ceramic tagine, started off on hob and then cooked in oven for an hour. It was scrummy.
This required a bit of prep but was delicious and well worth it! Both my boyfriend and I loved it. It also keeps and reheats exceptionally well, so it made for a good Sunday meal-prep option. Thank you for the recipe!