Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemon and Olives

Thinly slice the onions and crush the garlic. Season the bone-in chicken thighs and drumsticks well with salt and black pepper. Heat the oil in a tagine or heavy casserole and brown the pieces all over, in batches. Set them aside.

Lower the heat and cook the thinly sliced onions slowly in the same fat for 10 minutes until soft, then add the crushed garlic, ground ginger, turmeric and cumin and cook for 1 more minute until fragrant.

Crumble in the saffron, return the chicken with any juices, and pour in the stock. It should come about halfway up the meat, not cover it.

Cover and simmer very gently for 45 minutes, turning the pieces once. The liquid should barely move — a hard boil makes the chicken stringy.

Add the sliced preserved lemon skin, the flesh discarded, and the pitted olives and simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes more, until the sauce has reduced and thickened around the chicken. It is done when the meat pulls easily from the bone with no pink near it.

Taste and season carefully with freshly ground black pepper; the lemon and olives bring a lot of salt. Chop the coriander and parsley, scatter them over and serve with gluten-free bread, if you like.