This one-pot vegetable tagine combines tender potatoes, carrots, chickpeas, and sweet apricots with warm Moroccan spices for a hearty vegan dinner in about 55 minutes.
A Moroccan Vegetable Tagine Made in a Dutch Oven
Tagine refers both to the slow-simmered North African stew and the clay or ceramic vessel traditionally used to cook it. The pot has a broad base and a distinctive cone-shaped lid that helps circulate moisture as the ingredients cook.
For this easy Moroccan vegetable tagine, I use my Dutch oven instead. It gives the vegetables plenty of room to cook with the onions, tomatoes, broth, and spices, and it makes this classic-style dish easy to prepare in any kitchen.
Potatoes, carrots, and sweet potato make the stew hearty, while chickpeas add substance. Dried apricots bring a subtle sweetness to balance the tomatoes and warm spices, and a squeeze of lemon at the end wakes everything up. The recipe serves six and is gluten-free as written.
Ingredients for Vegetable Tagine
This vegetable tagine begins with familiar vegetables and pantry ingredients, but the spice blend gives it its distinctly Moroccan character.
- Lemon juice and parsley: Add both at the end for a fresh, bright finish.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Use a good olive oil to sauté the vegetables and finish each bowl. I like our Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil here for its rich, peppery flavor.
- Onion and garlic: These aromatics create the savory base for the stew.
- Carrots, russet potatoes, and sweet potato: The mix of vegetables gives this tagine its satisfying texture. As they simmer, they soak up the spices and tomato broth.
- Harissa spice blend: This recipe uses a dry harissa spice blend, not harissa paste. Made with chili, sumac, caraway, fennel, and other warm spices, Harissa Spice Blend is the main flavor-maker here. You can use ras el hanout instead.
- Coriander, cinnamon, and turmeric: A little ground coriander adds citrusy warmth, while cinnamon and turmeric round out the spice profile.
- Whole peeled tomatoes and vegetable broth: These create the savory cooking liquid for the vegetables. Use low-sodium broth so you can adjust the seasoning to taste.
- Dried apricots: Chopped apricots lend a gentle sweetness that plays well with the earthy spices and tangy tomatoes.
- Cooked chickpeas: Stirred in near the end, chickpeas make this vegetable tagine more substantial without changing its vegetable-forward character.
How to Make Vegetable Tagine
This is a straightforward one-pot recipe. Have the vegetables chopped before you begin, then follow the recipe card below for the exact ingredient amounts.
- Finish with lemon and parsley. Stir in the lemon juice and parsley. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt or harissa spice blend if you like. Serve hot with a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
- Sauté the onions. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions, raise the heat to medium-high, and cook for about 5 minutes, tossing regularly.
- Add the vegetables and spices. Stir in the garlic, carrots, russet potatoes, and sweet potato. Season with salt, harissa spice blend, coriander, cinnamon, and turmeric, then toss well so the vegetables are evenly coated.
- Build the flavor. Cook the vegetables over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring regularly with a wooden spoon. This gives the spices time to bloom and brings out the sweetness of the vegetables before the broth goes in.
- Simmer until tender. Add the whole peeled tomatoes, chopped apricots, and broth. Cook over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
- Stir in the chickpeas. Add the cooked chickpeas and let them warm through over low heat for another 5 minutes.
Tips for This Easy Vegetable Tagine
- Use a Dutch oven or another heavy pot with a lid. You do not need a traditional tagine pot for this recipe; I use a Dutch oven here.
- Give the vegetables time to become tender. The potatoes, carrots, and sweet potato should all be easily pierced before you add the chickpeas.
- Save the lemon for the end. Adding it after simmering keeps its flavor bright and gives the warm, savory stew a welcome lift.
- Taste before serving. The recipe is designed for you to adjust the salt and harissa spice blend to your preference after the vegetables and chickpeas have finished cooking.
What to Serve with Moroccan Vegetable Tagine
Serve this vegetable tagine in shallow bowls with couscous, rice, or warm bread to make the most of its flavorful broth. Homemade pita bread is especially good for scooping up the vegetables and chickpeas.
For a larger Moroccan-inspired spread, add a bright Moroccan-style carrot salad or a platter of five-ingredient yogurt flatbread. If you are planning a meal with both vegetarian and meat options, pair it with my Moroccan lamb stew or one-pot Moroccan chicken.
Can You Freeze Vegetable Tagine?
Yes. The Mediterranean Dish team has confirmed that leftover vegetable tagine freezes well.
More Moroccan Recipes to Make on Repeat
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Easy Moroccan Lamb Stew Recipe
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Moroccan-Style Carrot Salad
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing
- 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and chopped
- 8 to 10 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
- 2 large carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cubed
- Salt
- 1 tablespoon Harissa spice blend, or 1 1/2 teaspoons ras el hanout
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 cups canned whole peeled tomatoes
- 1/2 cup chopped dried apricots, heaping
- 1 quart low-sodium vegetable broth or broth of your choice
- 2 cups cooked chickpeas
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Handful fresh parsley leaves
Instructions
- Sauté the onions. In a large heavy pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat until just shimmering. Add the onions, increase the heat to medium-high, and sauté for 5 minutes, tossing regularly.
- Cook the vegetables. Add the garlic, carrots, russet potatoes, and sweet potato. Season with salt, harissa spice blend, coriander, cinnamon, and turmeric, then toss to combine. Cook over medium-high heat for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring regularly with a wooden spoon.
- Add the tomatoes, apricots, and broth. Season with a small dash of salt.
- Simmer until the vegetables are tender. Keep the heat at medium-high and cook for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender.
- Warm the chickpeas. Stir in the chickpeas and cook over low heat for another 5 minutes.
- Finish and serve. Stir in the lemon juice and fresh parsley. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt or harissa spice blend to your liking. Transfer to serving bowls, drizzle generously with Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil, and serve hot with bread, couscous, or rice.
Video
Notes
- This recipe was developed for a Dutch oven or another large, heavy pot with a lid. We have not tested it in a traditional tagine pot.
- Shop this recipe: Visit our shop for Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil, Harissa Spice Blend, ras el hanout, ground coriander, turmeric, and more Mediterranean pantry essentials.
Nutrition
Try Our Authentic Italian Olive Oil
Hand-picked and cold-extracted Extra Virgin Olive Oil from 100% Nocellara del Belice Sicilian olives.
Your recipes are very attractive healthy tempting and easy to make.
I appreciate them.
Aww! Thank you, Milena!
Love this soup!!
Yum. I made this tonight and its exactly what I was looking for. It worked really well – I upped the amount of cinnamon (and added a cinnamon stick) to make it really aromatic and popped in the lemon rind to add a bit more zing! Its a great recipe – thank you!
Hi there
About to cook your vegetable tagine for the first time. Do you provide a conversation for US cups to grams/ounces. I’m in the UK. I’ve checked online and am a little confused 🙄 Looking forward to hearing from you.
Delicious and so easy. Love the dried apricots and wonderful seasonings.
This is so delicious! I put a handful of raisins in the step with apricots. So good. Thanks for the recipe
Ooo! Love those additions. Thanks for sharing, Kylie!
Stunning recipe. Exactly what I was looking for. I added ~1 cup of cauliflower if place of one russet potato. And let simmer for close to an hour to get the thickness I wanted. Served over couscous. Well balanced flavor and nutrient packed. Great toppings include goat cheese crumble or avocado!
I fixed this tonight served over Suzy’s Greek Lemon Rice that I made with Preserved Lemons. Mmmm, mmmm good!
This is so delicious!!! I am enjoying it so much with the cold weather here. I doubled the Harissa spice only because I liked the flavor of it with the vegetables. Noted “Delicious” on my copy. Thanks Suzie, this is a winner in my book.
Love it! Thanks, Brenda!
I don’t understand this recipe as it is described as tagine but seems to be cooked on a stove top. Am I missing something or is that correct? If so, why cook with a Dutch oven instead of a pan which is designed to be used over localised heat rather than one designed for a more even heat from the oven?
Hi, Jennifer. This is Suzy’s own spin on vegetable tagine. She realizes it’s not traditional… it’s a simpler take on a classic recipe. Hope you give it a try!
This is waaaaayy too sweet. I think using either much less apricot, or leaving them whole and not chopped, or omitting the sweet potato, will fix it. Otherwise it’s like dessert. Not sure my family will eat it!!! 🙁
Hello,
Is there a recommended way to store/freeze this? I want to make it for Thanksgiving, but I would like to cook it over the weekend, and perhaps, travel with it via car over a few hours.
I was thinking I’d cook it on Sunday, Freeze it, then when I drive over Wednesday, I can keep it in a cooler, then let it unfreeze overnight in the fridge, finally, heating it up for Thanksgiving dinner.
Hi, Abdul. I think your freezing/reheating plan here will work great with this recipe. Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Very easy and good, next time I will use less lemon juice however, a while lemon was way too overpowering on the broth
In this recipe, is Harissa spice blend the same as the Harissa paste sold on your website? Do you use the same amount of paste as you would the spice?
Thank you!
Hi, Bernadette. They are similar in flavor profile for sure, but not exactly the same. We used to sell the spice blend in our shop, but unfortunately we don’t anymore. If you can’t find the spice in any shops near you, you can definitely use a bit of the harissa paste. Right now, I can’t give you and exact amount… we’re still working on updating this and haven’t been able to put it through a good test. You may just have to experiment a bit. If you give this a try, please stop back to share your thoughts!!
Would it be possible to add some sauteed lamb to this? I am having a dinner party with two vegetarians and two carnivores. I thought I would make the lamb separately and add it to half this recipe in a separate serving dish. Would that work?
Sure, Jacqui. You could do that!
Looks delicious. Can’s find any video :/
Hi, Sean. The video should appear above the recipe card towards the end of the post. Unfortunately, though, some web browsers block pop ups which, for some reason, also blocks instructional videos. You may need to adjust your browser settings, or try a different browser on your end in order to see them.