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Aubergines (eggplant) used to be somewhat bitter and it was recommended that one only buy the sort with the long line on the base rather than ones with a round bit. This rule probably still holds good but a lot of the bitterness has now been bred out of them. To overcome the bitterness it was common practise to slice and salt before cooking, something which is probably not necessary these days (2006).
Feel free to leave out this step ... and I didn't brush the slices with oil before I grilled them, in the interests in lowering the fat content of the dish. I suspect that it is not really necessary to grill the slices at all - just chop them up and heave them in.
INGREDIENTS
2 large aubergines peeled and cut into slices (ooops - I didn't peel them)
3 cloves of garlic, minced
10 - 12 chicken thighs (recipe suggests tying them up with cotton string to maintain their shapes)
3 onions thinly sliced
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon Ras El Hanout spice blend (or look at one of my other tagine recipes for spice to blend yourself)
½ - 1 cup of good chicken stock
a pinch of saffron
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to season.
METHOD
Slice and salt the aubergine on both sides and leave for 10 minutes. Rinse and dry
Lightly brush the aubergine slices with oil and grill each side until brown
Heat oil in a heavy casserole dish and brown the chicken pieces
Remove when browned and add onions, honey and spices
Add the the aubergine and chicken to the casserole
Mix the stock, salt, pepper and saffron and pour over the ingredients in the casserole dish.
Cover and cook for 45 minutes covered and then 20 minutes uncovered if the liquid needs to be reduced.
Serve with cous cous