Every cuisine has its own classic stew. Italy has cacciatore, France has ragoût, India has curry, and Mexico has mole. Morocco, the country I’m from, has tagine (pronounced TAH-jin and sometimes spelled tajine). This wonderful stew, with its many variations, is named for the earthenware dish in which the stew is traditionally cooked. The exotic-looking and often beautiful pot is topped with a conical lid that traps steam during cooking. The resulting dish is a fragrant stew with a meltingly tender texture and wonderfully blended flavors.

但是，制作这些芬芳的炖菜之一的真正艺术不是在锅中 - 您可以用紧身的盖子代替沉重的锅 - 而是用酱汁中的奶酪缓慢烹饪的酱汁，经过精心调味。

Tagines vary from region to region and from kitchen to kitchen. In towns along Morocco’s two thousand miles of coastline, fresh seafood, such as tuna, sardines, or mussels, form the basis of many tagines. Inland, you’ll find tagines made with meat and chicken. Most of the time, the meat is used sparingly to intensify the flavor of the sauce rather than to act as the focus. Vegetables and fruits often make up the bulk of the dish. Whatever their other ingredients, most tagines include generous amounts of parsley and cilantro, as well as paprika, powdered ginger (Moroccans don’t use fresh ginger), golden turmeric, a bit of Spanish saffron, and a good amount of freshly ground black pepper. One of my favorite tagines, and the one featured here, combines the rich, sweet taste of prunes and honey with the full flavor of lamb and onions. Though this pairing may seem unusual, the blending of dried fruits and meat is a hallmark of Moroccan cuisine. The result is truly luscious; the prunes plump up with the juices from the meat and give the whole dish a silken texture.

MIMIC A TAGINE WITH A HEAVY POT AND ALUMINUM FOIL

在家里，我收藏了摩洛哥的塔吉因斯。有些是用普通的未磨粘土制成的，而另一些则是华丽的釉料。我不时使用它们，主要是用作菜肴，当餐桌上时它们是非常戏剧性的 - 但我经常会像我的荷兰烤箱那样使用一个深锅。无论您使用什么锅，都可以用箔纸盖住它，然后再盖上盖子以获得真正紧密的密封。

Brown the meat and add the bone to the pot for more flavor. I usually use half a leg of lamb when making this tagine, cutting the meat into chunks and adding the bone for extra flavor. Lamb shanks also work well, and lamb shoulder and stew meat are even easier options. If you buy boneless lamb, ask your butcher for some lamb shank bones to add to the pot. Before adding any liquid ingredients, brown the meat on all sides in batches; an initial searing adds even more flavor.

Add the seasonings and liquids and then cover the pot.I gently crush the saffron threads and add them to the beef stock before pouring the stock into the pot. This step releases the saffron’s flavor and disperses the spice evenly.

关于塔格尼斯的奇妙之处在于，像大多数炖菜一样，它们很容易制作。当肉做饭时，它会产生自己的奇妙酱汁。我最喜欢的时刻烹饪Tagine是将盖子从锅上抬起，看着我的客人对充满房间的诱人香气做出反应。