How to Cook with Moroccan Tagines

July 23, 2021July 23, 2021 Marvin Wilson

The tall, attractive, conical cookware common to Moroccan (and other North African cultures) known as the “tagine” is similar in function to the western world’s Dutch Oven.

(Photo Attributed to Author: Bawdeep2010)

However, knowing how to cook with Moroccan tagines is a different skill set in some ways. This article is intended to help those who would like to begin using the tagine effectively in their kitchens.

First, let’s get into exactly what the tagine is, how it is made, and how it cooks food. Then we will delve into how to cook with Moroccan tagines.

The tagine itself is named after a style of North African dishes by the same name. Tagines, the dishes or meals prepared in the tagine, can be stews (by far the most often prepared in them), meats, vegetables, rice, couscous, just about anything, really. For a great lamb tagine recipe, click here.

Traditionally, for centuries, tagines have been made of clay, baked into an extremely hard and durable type of porcelain. You can still get the traditional, clay-based tagines today, and they are still commonly used in North Africa. In modern times, however, some manufactures have been producing tagines with equally effective cooking capabilities made of other materials, such as enameled cast-iron.

The unique conical shape of the tagine provides a moist, hot cooking enclosure for the foods being prepared. Moroccan tagines have a shallow, wide base. The cone-shaped lid fits snug and tight inside the base. During the cooking process, steam rises up from the base into the cone. In the cone, the steam condenses, forms beads of moisture, and trickles down the sides back into foods cooking in the base.

If you are familiar with the Dutch Oven, you will recognize some similarity here. The difference is that the tagine is even more efficient with respect to how much liquid is needed overall. The design and method of cooking the tagine possesses is such that it requires far less liquid than the Dutch Oven in order to cook foods very slowly until completely tender.

Okay. With this information in mind, now here is …

How to Cook With Moroccan Tagines-

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Clean Your Cast Iron Skillets with Salt

May 11, 2020May 11, 2020 Marvin Wilson

When I first heard my Grandma tell me (I had just bought a new set of cookware) that, “You should clean your cast iron skillets with salt,” I thought she was joking. She wasn’t, and proceeded to show me by example with one of her own old skillets she had cooked with last night and was still on the stovetop.

Within two minutes, and with incredible ease, she turned a skillet that looked like this …

clean your cast iron skillets with salt public domain

… into this:

Cast-Iron-Pan public domain

I was flabbergasted!

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Kitchen Tips – Easy Peazy Potato Peeling

September 24, 2018September 24, 2018 Marvin Wilson

Welcome back to Ethnic Foods R Us for another Kitchen Tips post. Today you will discover the hands-down easiest and fastest way to efficiently peel a boiled potato – without the use of a peeler or a knife.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and if that’s true, a motion picture show is worth millions, eh?

So watch this short (1 minute) video and see for yourself –

Easy Peazy Potato Peeler Kitchen Tips!

Pretty neat, right? I thought so, and considered it a worthy tip to pass along here to you.

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Using Samurai Kitchen Swords

May 14, 2018May 14, 2018 Marvin Wilson

Worldwide, especially in developed countries, there is a growing interest in using Samurai kitchen swords.

(Photo Attributed to Author: Mara71)

And with good reason. These knives are made in the same, millennia old traditional fashion as the world’s finest swords ever known to man: the swords used in combat by the fierce and incomparable Japanese warriors known as the Samurai.

It is a small wonder, then, that chefs and home-cooking enthusiasts are discovering the satisfaction of using Samurai kitchen swords in their kitchens. They simply cannot be beat. The sharpness of the edge they can be honed to, the length of time and use they hold that razor sharpness, and the ease with which they can be resharpened make them superior cutlery against all others.

For anyone unfamiliar with this high grade of cutlery, there are certain precautions to be aware of, and some usage and maintenance skills that are needed to be aware of and learned. This post is to provide that, as well as more, information about using Samurai kitchen swords.

Let’s get right into it, okay?

A Primer on Using Samurai Kitchen Swords

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Handy Kitchen Tips – Boiled Egg Peeling

May 29, 2017May 29, 2017 Marvin Wilson

Welcome back to another edition in our “Kitchen Tips” post series. Today I will show you how, once and for all, to be able to quickly and efficiently peel your boiled eggs.

(Photo Attributed to Author: Dev920)

Tired of the peels sticking to the egg? Pulling out gouges of the white flesh while you peck and pull away, hardly ever getting that perfectly peeled egg with no little specks of peel remaining that you don’t see, but feel when you pop the egg in your mouth?

Watch this short (just over a minute) video, and from this day forth, never struggle with this kitchen duty again.

Easy-Peazy, huh?

That’s it for today, and come back often for more Kitchen Tips! You can also search this site for more tips, using the search bar at the top right of the home page.

So have fun now, and enjoy your boiled eggs without feeling hassled when trying to peel them perfectly.

Chow, Y’all!

Oh, and hey, before you go – The Old Silly likes to engage with all of you readers, so please leave a comment.

If you don’t see the comments box/area below, just click on the post title and it will appear, or, you can also CLICK HERE to make it appear.

Share some thoughts/ideas, ask a question, or make some suggestions of what you’d be interested in having available here, anything related to ethnic foods and cooking. I will reply to any and all who do so.

My Best Always, Your Friend,

Marvin (The Old Silly) Wilson

How to Heat Cold Butter Without Melting It

December 2, 2016 Marvin Wilson

How to Heat Cold Butter Without Melting It, is today’s Kitchen Tip.

(Photo Attributed to Author: Steve Karg, aka Skarg at en.wikipedia)

We’ve all been there. You have yummy, fresh oven baked biscuits, or hot waffles or pancakes, all ready to serve, but – oh no! The only butter in the kitchen is in the refrigerator, cold and hard. You need soft butter, and you need it fast.

Problem is, most methods of heating butter to just where it is soft, not melted, takes a long time. Too long. Your delectables will no longer be nice and warm by the time your butter is ready to spread easily.

Well, fear not! Here, in this short video, is the answer to your dilemma, and the best answer to-

How to Heat Cold Butter Without Melting It!

Pretty slick, eh? I’ve tried it, and it works like a charm. So the next time you find yourself in need of soft butter, and all you have is a stiff cold stick of it, remember this simple method of how to heat cold butter without melting it.

That’s it for today, hope you found this kitchen tip to be helpful. Please do leave a comment – have you tried this technique? Do you have a favorite, good way of achieving the same results?

Peel Your Garlic the Easy Way

September 22, 2015September 22, 2015 Marvin Wilson

(Photo Attributed to Author: Donovan Govan)

Peel your garlic the easy way, in just a matter of seconds.

Sound good? I know it did to me, when I came across this method. And I liked it so much I thought it worthy of sharing here on Ethnic Foods R Us.

Almost every ethnic culture’s cuisine, worldwide, uses garlic.

Fresh garlic.

It provides a sharp, pungent accent to foods that no other herb can. The passionate flavor and tang of fresh garlic is indispensable for many ethnic dishes.

Problem is, peeling the darn cloves can be a frustrating and messy job. You wind up with garlic under your fingernails, your hands smelling of garlic so strong you have to wash vigorously with soap and water to get rid of the odor.

Well no more. This wonderfully simple and fast method of peeling garlic is the answer for how to peel your garlic the easy way. Here are the steps, which can be done in a matter of a few seconds-

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Bamboo Steamers Bring It!

June 4, 2015August 20, 2019 Marvin Wilson

One of my favorite ethnic foods is the cuisine of China. The Chinese steam many of their foods, and this post is all about using the amazing and easy to cook great with …

Bamboo Steamers

Bamboo Steamer

Because they use no oils or fats to cook with, Bamboo Steamers are a very healthy way to prepare foods. A process that is much gentler than boiling helps to preserve beneficial vitamins and minerals. Additionally, Bamboo steamers allow the foods to retain their color, texture, shape and flavor better than any other method of cooking.

Cooks in China have, for centuries, relied on bamboo steamers. Chinese cuisine calls for cooking methods which will prevent condensation from dripping on the food and absorb excess moisture. The steamers, constructed of a circular bamboo frame, feature a bottom that is slatted bamboo—this allows steam to move freely throughout the cooking chamber. And the lid, a bamboo dome, promotes good heat circulation.

Because Chinese cooks use the wok to cook in so often, bamboo steamers were (and still are) designed for a snug fit inside the various sized woks, held up against the circular sides of the wok and above the steaming water. And, because they can be stacked two and even three baskets high, it becomes possible to steam an entire meal at once: fish, vegetables and meat, all steaming in one wok. The key in doing this is to place foods that take longer to cook in the bottom basket, and have the upper baskets containing foods that take less time to cook.

Traditionally, the baskets are lined on the bottom with leafy veggies, like cabbage or lettuce. Maybe even banana leaves, depending on the food being cooked. But you can also use parchment paper, or even a plate—the main thing is to keep the cooking food separated a bit from the bamboo. This keeps the food from sticking, and also preserves the integrity of the bamboo. It also prevents the bamboo from absorbing the cooking food’s flavors, which is desirable. You don’t want your steaming tomatoes to come out tasting of fish, and visa versa.

Here are three easy steps to follow for effective use of a bamboo steamer in a wok:

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