Vegan Vegetable Tajine Recipe

Today, we are making a great savoury and sweet tajine-style recipe. This vegetable tajine combines sweetness, spice, and savoury flavour in a protein-packed one-pot dish. This tajine is a slow cook making all the flavours and ingredients come together deliciously in a flavourful sauce. I can’t even explain how satisfying it is to eat. Just give it a try for yourself.

Tajines are a classic north African dish, which got its name from the earthenware pot it is prepared in. Sadly, I don’t have a proper tajine in my kitchen yet, so I will sinfully prepare this dish in an iron-cast dutch oven instead. I also cooked tajine-like recipes in standard pots, and while it’s not the same experience, the final dish tasted amazing nevertheless, so use whatever kitchen equipment you have on hand, and let’s go!

Ingredients for making Vegetable Tajine:

• Chickpeas
• Bell peppers
• Red onion
• Garlic
• Organic lemon
• Mint
• Parsley
• Walnuts
• Dried plums
• Tomato puree
• Vegetable stock
• Olive oil
• Cumin
• Bharat
• Paprika powder
• Smoked paprika powder
• Ginger powder

As a source of protein, chickpeas work amazingly for these vegetable tajine recipes. You can either use dried chickpeas or canned chickpeas for the dish. Make sure to soak your dried chickpeas overnight before you prepare this dish. Furthermore, red peppers are my vegetable of choice. Additionally, I add walnuts, tomato puree, garlic, onion, and plums. A few simple spices and this tajine is an explosion of flavour. Try to get yourself some delicious flatbread to enjoy with the tajine!

Delicious Vegetable Tajine Recipe:

Making the tajine is pretty simple, and it is such a satisfying recipe to cook. Firstly, we want to layer all our delicious ingredients right. Then, we add our flavourful vegetable stock and allow the tajine to simmer until everything comes together deliciously.

Firstly, I like to prepare some homemade vegetable stock. Having high-quality vegetable stock adds so much additional flavour to the dish, and homemade vegetable stock is the way to go. I used some vegetable scraps, carrots, and celery to make the stock. I got some more details for making delicious vegetable stock in this recipe!

Once the stock simmers, we can start building our delicious tajine. I like to make a flavourful base layer of onion and garlic. Peel your onion, and slice it into quite thick slices. Then, cover the bottom of your pot or tajine with the onion.

Next, crush and peel your garlic. I cut the garlic into rather big pieces and add it over the onion. Pour the olive oil over the onions and garlic.

Next, I add the chickpeas. Rinse the chickpeas, and add them to the centre of your tajine or pot. I like to make a big pile of chickpeas, over which we can later arrange the vegetables. Mix your spices, and add ⅔ of the delicious spice mix over the chickpeas. Also, season with a pinch of salt.

Next, give your bell peppers a good wash and cut them lengthwise into approximately equal-sized pieces. Add half of the plums to the tajine, and the bell peppers in a cone shape around the chickpeas.

Sprinkle the plums around the bell peppers, and top everything with the remaining spice mix. Lastly, grate the peel of your lemon over the dish. Now, the last thing we need to do is to add enough liquid to the tajine. Strain your vegetables from the stock, and dissolve the tomato puree into the liquid. Once the vegetable stock is ready, gently add it to the tajine.

Now, put your pot on a stove, and allow the tajine to simmer for at least one and a half hour. You want to keep it at a rather low-medium temperature and cook it with its lid covered. I cooked the tajine in our fireplace, which worked amazingly as well. Important: we don’t want to stir the tajine while cooking. If there is enough liquid and the temperature is right, it should not burn, and the tajine will come out with a beautiful presentation. You only need to check every once in a while if there is enough liquid remaining, and add more vegetable stock or water if you are running too low.

Once the cooking time is over, most of the liquid should have evaporated, and the ingredients should have simmered down beautifully. Allow the tajine to rest for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, we can prepare our herbs. Give them a good wash, strip down the leaves of the herbs, and cut them finely. Sprinkle them over the tajine, and add the walnuts, too. Also, you can add freshly squeezed juice from half of your lemon to the tajine.

Now, there is nothing left to do except to dig in. Tajine is a food for sharing, where one eats from the tajine by scooping up the deliciousness with flatbread. So, try to get your hands on some delicious flatbread, and feel free to try this delicious recipe with your friends or family!

Some more Delicious Recipe Inspirations:

Meze are a delicious social food as well! Having a few mezes before this chickpea tajine will make an absolutely delicious feast.

• Sweet and tangy Harak Osbao is so comforting.
• This refreshing tabbouleh is a fantastic salad to try. 
• Tasty vegan baba ganoush is a classic dip to enjoy!
• This vegan tagine is another twist on vegetable tagines.
• A simple and smooth hummus can’t miss.
• Sweet and tangy muhammara is one of my personal favourites!
• Fattoush, the refreshing salad with crispy pita chips, is absolutely incredible.