My flavourful, warmly spiced Vegetable Tagine is a versatile and easy to make main course that can be both vegan and gluten free. Hearty and comforting, you can adjust the spicing to suit your family’s taste so that everyone will enjoy it.
Do you love fresh flavours and a bit of spice? Then my Vegetable Tagine is perfect for you. The deeper flavours of root vegetables combine with the bright taste of fresh peppers and zucchini (courgettes) to make this dish a real winner both in terms of the texture and taste. A boost of protein from canned chickpeas makes it extra healthy, and the harissa and cumin seeds add warmth and spice. It’s perfect if you are trying to reduce the amount of meat you eat without sacrificing flavour or feel good factor.
A Versatile Tagine Recipe
You can of course switch up the vegetables you use in this vegetable tagine, depending on what is available. I sometimes use parsnip instead of sweet potato and carrots work well in place of butternut squash. The peppers don’t have to be red, although I do like the way they look in the recipe. Yellow, orange or even sweet green peppers will also work. (I’d only use the green ones if nothing else was available and then hopefully with a coloured pepper or two.)
How Do I Make This Recipe Gluten-Free?
Serve the vegetable tagine over rice instead of couscous to make it gluten-free.
Is This Recipe Really Vegan?
If you substitute maple syrup for the honey, the this Vegetable Tagine is vegan. You can also omit the sweetener if you prefer. It will alter the flavour but the tagine is still delicious.
A Quick and Easy Vegetable Tagine
Beyond chopping the vegetables, there isn’t really a huge amount of work to making this vegetable tagine. Plus, compared to meaty tagines, it take a lot less time for the flavours to blend as it cooks. Don’t hesitate to use pre-chopped vegetables if time is really tight, although I do like to save money by only doing that when time is at a real premium.
What To Do With Leftover Vegetable Tagine?
If you do have leftovers, you can gently reheat them, adding a bit of stock if necessary. They taste delicious in a wrap, especially with a bit of grated cheddar on top!
Mediterranean Vegetable Tagine – Printable Recipe
Mediterranean Vegetable Tagine – Vegan and Gluten Free
Equipment
- 2 sheet pans or baking sheets
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 generous teaspoons harissa or to taste Rose harissa is particularly nice in this recipe
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey Be sure to use maple syrup to make this recipe vegan.
- 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut in small cubes (about 1 cup measure of cubes) or use packaged, peeled and cubed squash
- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut in small cubes (about 1 cup measure of cubes) or use packaged, peeled and cubed sweet potato
- I red onion, peeled and chopped in small chunks or slices
- 3 red peppers, de-seeded and cut in squares
- 2 medium courgettes, cut in half moons
- 1 can of chickpeas, about 14 ounces or 400 ml This is roughly 1 cup of chickpeas
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- salt and pepper
- hot couscous or rice to serve
- fresh or dried parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C (180°C for fan ovens).
- You will need 2 sheet pans or large baking sheets.
- In a small bowl mix together the olive oil, harissa and the honey.
- Spread the squash and sweet potato on one sheet pan.
- Sprinkle with half of the cumin seeds.
- Toss with half of the harissa mixture and put in the oven for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, spread the chopped onions, red peppers and courgettes on the other sheet pan.
- Sprinkle with half of the cumin seeds.
- Toss with the remaining half of the harissa mixture.
- When the 10 minutes are up, remove the sheet pan with the sweet potatoes from the oven and gently turn the mixture.
- Return the pan to the oven, and also put the pan with the red peppers and courgettes in the oven as well.
- Roast for about 15 minutes, turning the vegetables once half way through.
- At this point the squash and sweet potato should be tender and the other vegetables should be just cooked.
- The vegetables will have shrunk a little at this point so they will hopefully all fit on one sheet pan.
- Add the drained chickpeas and stir to coat with some of the sauce.
- Put back in the oven for 5 minutes to heat the chickpeas through.
- Divide the couscous or rice (for a gluten free option) between four plates or bowls and serve the tagine over top.
- Garnish with fresh or dried parsley.
Notes
More Delicious Vegetarian Main Dishes
Parsnip Topped Vegetable Pot Pies
Vegan Pad Thai with a Gluten Free Option
The post Easy Vegetable Tagine – Vegan with a Gluten Free Option appeared first on April J Harris.