Finding the Best Moroccan Tagine Pot for You

What is a Tagine Pot?

You may notice that I am making it a point to specify tagine pot and not just refer to this as a tagine. There is a simple reason for this. The word tagine has two meanings. A tagine refers to the food cooked inside the pot as well as the pot that is used to cook.

Traditionally tagine pots are made out of clay. They can be glazed or unglazed, the finish just depends on what the cook likes better. In Morocco you’ll also see lightweight aluminum tagines. Outside of Morocco there are more companies are making pots out of other materials like cast iron or even steel.

Tagines come in a variety of sizes. There are small cooking tagines that serve 1 or 2 people, medium for a small family and large tagines for 6+ people. If size is a factor the smaller tagines are good but a medium sized tagine pot is a good investment for long-term use.

Choosing the best tagine for cooking has a few factors to consider;

• what will you be cooking?
• how much experience do you have using a tagine?
• how often will you be using your tagine?
• how much money do you want to spend on your tagine cookware?

Cooking in a tagine requires a little bit of experimenting until you understand how yours works. An unglazed clay tagine will cook a lot differently than a cast iron enameled tagine. For beginners who don’t want to spend a lot of time fussing with traditional clay tagines, it makes sense to opt for the glazed versions. These tend to be more expensive however you can use them to cook many different things with or without the lid.

Those who want a more traditional tagine should look for an unglazed clay tagine. These are very easy to purchase in Morocco and make a great item to pick up if you’re visiting and want to bring something home. They also can be purchased abroad which is a good choice if you don’t want to carry the extra weight!

Where Can I Buy a Tagine Pot?

If you would have asked this question even a few years ago your options would have been very limited. But, thankfully Moroccan food is really making waves in the food scene. Today it’s a lot easier to buy tagines!

As mentioned above, if you’re visiting Morocco this is the best place to buy a traditional tagine. You will see two different types of pots. One is painted on the exterior, and one is plain. You can not cook in the decorated tagines.

When you are shopping you should make sure to double check if the pot is able to be put on the stovetop and/or into the oven – this is especially the case when purchasing clay tagines.

If you are buying a tagine in Morocco you’ll also want to be aware that some do contain small levels of lead. The makers of the tagines are becoming aware of this and doing more and more to make sure that their tagines are safe however at the end of the day money becomes a factor. If you’re unsure you can purchase an at home lead test.  You could even bring them along and check before you buy.

Best Tagine Comparison Guide

As wonderful as it is that there are now so many tagines on the market, it can be really hard to determine which one is the right one for you. I have chosen some of the top tagines to compare in this post so that you can make the right choice for you.

How to Use a Tagine

If this is the first tagine you will be buying then you may need a few pointers on how to make the best use of it. When getting started it will depend on the tagine you choose.

For clay tagines you should always season/prime it to begin with. This may sound like an arduous process but if you want to keep your tagine from cracking it is very important. Not only does it strengthen the clay from cracking but can help remove some of the clay taste that comes naturally.

1. Soak the lid and the base of the tagine in water for a minimum of 2 hours.
2.  Drain the water and air dry the tagine. For an unglazed tagine, rub the entire vessel (interior and exterior) of the lid and base with olive oil.
3. Put the pieces into a cold oven and turn the heat to 150C/300F for 2 hours.
4. Turn off the oven, and leave the tagine to cool.
5. Wash the cooled tagine by hand, and coat the interior again with olive oil before storing or using.

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Once you’ve gotten your tagine and prepared it, it’s time to start cooking! There are countless tagine recipes out there so where should you start? You can browse my site for several different recipes. There are also a few cookbooks that I really love and think you will too.

Once you start cooking with a tagine you will discover how easy it really is. I highly recommend investing in a piece that you can have for several years. Even though it may seem like another piece of cookware it has so many uses!