Embark on a flavorful adventure with these vegan Moroccan recipes, each dish celebrating the rich and aromatic spices that define Moroccan cuisine. From hearty tagines to vibrant sheet pan dinners and refreshing couscous salads, these recipes offer a delightful taste of Morocco while adhering to a plant-based lifestyle.
Vegan Moroccan Tagine: Aromatic Stew
If you’ve never had Moroccan tagine, then boy are you in for a treat. This is a vegan take on the classic North African stew. Tagine is a North African slow-simmered stew. It’s savory, yet slightly sweet, and full of warm spices.
The base of this stew is made with tomatoes flavored with tons of warm seasonings and spices. Added to the stew are chickpeas, spinach, and fresh herbs. It tastes quite different compared to the average stew an individual may think of. Tagine is also on the thicker side, making it the perfect dish to serve over a grain.
You can eat this vegan Moroccan tagine on its own or over a bed of your favorite grain or starch! Like I mentioned earlier, I love eating this tagine over a baked sweet potato. It also pairs deliciously with naan bread.
Ingredients:
Read also: Explore Vegan Nigerian Cuisine
- Canned tomatoes
- Chickpeas
- Spinach
- Warm, aromatic seasonings and spices
Instructions:
- Combine all of the seasonings and spices in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In another bowl or container, combine the vegetable stock, tomato puree, chopped tomatoes, and agave nectar. Set aside.
- Place a large stock pot over medium heat. Once hot, add in the olive oil and diced yellow onion. Stir and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic and the seasoning/spice blend into the pot. Stir constantly for 3 minutes.
- Turn the heat down to medium-low. Add the bowl of the wet ingredients you combined earlier into the pot. Stir well, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Stir occasionally.
- Add the cooked chickpeas into the pot, stir well, re-cover, and cook for 25 more minutes.
- Once thick, turn the heat off and add fresh baby spinach, parsley, and cilantro.
- Serve over your favorite grain or starch.
Tips and Variations
Adding in carrots, potatoes, eggplant, or squash would be delicious. The addition of chopped vegetables will bulk up the tagine and add even more nutrients. If adding in a harder vegetable, like potato, I would recommend par-cooking it beforehand.
This vegan Moroccan tagine recipe is easy and quick to make as long as you have the full recipe prepped and ready to go before cooking. I always gather together all of my spices in one bowl and all of my wet ingredients in another. I then chop any component that needs to be chopped. To make this tagine, I saute yellow onion until soft. I then add in fresh minced garlic and all of the seasonings and spices. The kitchen immediately fills with warm aromatics; I love it! Next, I dump in my wet ingredients, which are mainly canned tomatoes and vegetable stock. Next, I add in cooked chickpeas and allow the stew to simmer for a bit longer to thicken slowly.
Vegan Tagine with Chickpeas: A One-Pot Wonder
This comforting Vegan Tagine with Chickpeas is an aromatic Moroccan-inspired one-pot stew that’ll warm you up from the inside. It’s a simple recipe made in one pot that can be enjoyed even on busy weeknights. This Vegan Tagine with Chickpeas is the perfect one-pot wholesome dinner.
Bold Moroccan spices, a healthy blend of vegetables, chickpeas, and dried fruit transform into a luscious and indulgent stew. Plus, it’s easy to make, packed with anti-inflammatory goodness, and will leave you with plenty of leftovers for freezer meals. Any good tagine is heavily scented with aromatic spices, and this one is no different.
Read also: Delicious Ethiopian Vegan Cuisine
To finish, dollops of a 2-minute vegan yogurt sauce are added on top of each serving. This is a one-pot recipe that’s easy and straightforward to make and leaves you with enough for 6 people. Enjoy the batch for big family dinners or keep the leftovers in the fridge or freezer for later.
Key Ingredients:
- Chickpeas
- Butternut Squash
- Ras el Hanout
- Medjool Dates
Instructions:
- Stir together the spices for the Spice Mix.
- Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the onions and season with a pinch of salt.
- Add the bell pepper, garlic, and cinnamon stick, and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Add the Spice Mix and stir vigorously for 1 minute. If it starts to dry out, add a splash of water.
- Pour in some of the broth to deglaze the pot and scrape up any browned bits. Add the remaining broth, squash, chickpeas, bay leaves, salt, tomatoes, and dates. Stir, and bring to a boil.
- Turn off the heat, and drizzle with a nice glug of olive oil, and stir again to combine. Place the lid on the pan and ensure it’s fitted tightly.
- Transfer to the oven and bake, covered, for 40 minutes, or until squash is tender and the mixture is thick and stew-like.
- Meanwhile, make the yogurt sauce (or make 1-2 days ahead of time and refrigerate). In a bowl, stir together the yogurt, lemon juice, salt to taste, and coriander. Refrigerate until ready to use.
- Once it’s ready, spoon the stew into bowls topped with yogurt sauce, chopped parsley or cilantro, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Moroccan Vegetable Tagine | Possibly the BEST Vegetable Dish EVER
Vegan Moroccan Chickpea Skillet: Freezer-Friendly Meal Prep
Vegan Moroccan chickpea skillet is freezer-friendly and perfect for meal prep! When it comes to dinner, I love a good one-pan meal, like this Chili Lime Sweet Potato Chicken Skillet or this Low Carb Lasagna Skillet. This Moroccan chickpea skillet makes dinner even easier. It is ridiculously easy to cook, and you can even assemble the ingredients ahead and stash in the fridge or freezer. When it's time for dinner, simply dump it in a pan, simmer for 30 minutes, and call it done!
Add all ingredients to a large skillet and stir up. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until sweet potatoes are cooked through, stirring up occasionally. If you see the skillet becoming dry, add in ½ cup water or stock and cover.
Read also: Healthy African Vegan Food
Storage: Store in the fridge for up to 4 days or the freezer for 1-2 months.
To assemble ahead and freeze: Combine all ingredients in a good quality gallon-sized freezer bag. Squeeze out as much air as possible and freeze flat for up to 3 months. Thaw completely before cooking in skillet as directed above.
Tips and Swaps
Can I swap the chickpeas? Can I swap the Moroccan seasoning? I bet one of these 7 Spice Blends would work well for this recipe! How long do leftovers keep? Leftovers or meal preps keep for up to 4 days.
Vegan Moroccan Sheet Pan Dinner
This Vegan Moroccan Sheet Pan Dinner is oh-so-delicious and ridiculously easy to whip up! Just toss the veggies and chickpeas with a warm Moroccan-inspired spice blend, roast until caramelized and tender, and serve with a creamy dairy-free yogurt sauce over rice, couscous, or quinoa. I'm all about delicious, easy sheet pan meals, and this one delivers bold, cozy flavors with almost no effort.
Just chop, toss, and roast-40 minutes later, dinner's on the table! Drizzle on the cool, creamy yogurt sauce, and you've got a healthy Moroccan-inspired meal that's vegan, gluten-free, and meal-prep friendly. Serve it over couscous, quinoa, rice, or with warm pita, and pack up any extras in a meal prep container for a ready-to-go lunch.
Ingredients:
- Veggies: Sweet potato, cauliflower, bell pepper, and red onion.
- Warming Spices: Cumin, paprika, coriander, cinnamon, turmeric, salt, and pepper.
- Garnishes: Fresh lemon juice, parsley or cilantro, and roasted pistachios or almonds.
- Couscous, quinoa, rice, or pita: Optional for serving.
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven: Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C).
- Prepare the Sheet Pan: Add the sweet potato, cauliflower, bell pepper, onion, and chickpeas to the baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil (or broth for oil-free), then sprinkle with cumin, paprika, coriander, cinnamon, turmeric, salt, and black pepper. Toss well to coat evenly, then spread everything into a single layer.
- Roast for 25-30 minutes, flipping halfway through, until the sweet potatoes and cauliflower are fork-tender.
- Make the Spiced Yogurt Sauce: While the veggies roast, whisk together the yogurt, parsley or cilantro, lemon juice, agave or maple syrup, cumin, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Finish & Serve: Once roasted, squeeze fresh lemon juice over the veggies. Drizzle with yogurt sauce, sprinkle with parsley or cilantro, and top with almonds or pistachios if using. Serve over couscous, quinoa, or rice, or with warm pita. Enjoy with extra yogurt sauce on the side!
Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Keep the yogurt sauce separate. Warm in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 10 minutes or microwave until hot.
Moroccan Couscous: A North African Staple
Moroccan Couscous with Chick Peas, Spinach, and Dried Fruit is loaded with Moroccan flavor, warm spices, and healthy ingredients. Couscous is a quintessential North African staple, and probably originated with the Berbers (an indigenous group found primarily in Libya, Tunisia, Morocco, and Algeria) in the 7th century. Authentic couscous is typically steamed, often atop a pot of stew.
Couscous is super versatile, but this dish does hit Moroccan flavor notes. Ras el hanout, a spice mix often used in North African cooking, is to Moroccan food what garam masala is to Indian. Whether you use a commercially prepared ras el hanout, or make your own simple mixture, you’re sure to love this exotic combination of spices.
Ingredients:
- Shallot
- Ras el hanout
- Cooked chick peas
- Greens (baby spinach leaves, but baby kale and arugula are also good options)
- Couscous
- Fresh herbs (mint, cilantro, or parsley)
Instructions:
- Add olive oil to a medium saucepan on medium-high heat. Add the ginger, garlic, and shallot. Sauté until onion is soft, transparent, and beginning to get some color (5 minutes or so).
- Add ras el hanout, smoked paprika, cumin. Stir 1 minute or so. Add salt and pepper.
- Add the broth or stock. Add chick peas and dried apricots (or other dried fruit). Bring to a boil.
- Add couscous and baby spinach. Cover and remove from heat. Allow to sit 5 minutes (or time specified on the package).
Tips and Swaps:
- Shallot: Red or sweet onion are great substitutes for a shallot, but any onion will do.
- Greens: Sautéed zucchini works well in place of the spinach, while orange mint, cilantro, parsley, and spearmint make great additions. Olives make an occasional appearance as well. All that to say, this is a great dish to “make your own” by adding what you love!
Spice Blends in Moroccan Cuisine
One of the defining characteristics of Moroccan cuisine is the use of complex spice blends. Ras el hanout, a cornerstone of Moroccan cooking, is a complex, aromatic blend of what I refer to as “warm” spices - cinnamon, ginger, anise, nutmeg, etc. You can purchase ras el hanout on Amazon, and find it in many markets.
An authentic ras el hanout is made from freshly ground whole spices, and may include more exotic spices like star anise and cardamom pods. Moroccan cooks typically reserve this spice mixture for specialty dishes.
Here's a table summarizing the key spices and their roles in these vegan Moroccan dishes:
| Spice | Description | Common Use |
|---|---|---|
| Ras el Hanout | Complex blend of warm spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg | Tagines, couscous, roasted vegetables |
| Cumin | Earthy and warm | Sheet pan dinners, tagines, chickpea skillets |
| Paprika | Sweet or smoked for color and flavor | Sheet pan dinners, couscous |
| Cinnamon | Sweet and aromatic | Tagines, sheet pan dinners |
| Turmeric | Earthy and slightly bitter with vibrant color | Sheet pan dinners, tagines |
| Ginger | Pungent and spicy | Couscous |
These vegan Moroccan recipes offer a delightful exploration of flavors, textures, and aromas. Whether you're a seasoned vegan or simply looking to incorporate more plant-based meals into your diet, these dishes are sure to impress.
Popular articles:
tags: #Moroccan
