According to Mr. Google: Ras el hanout is a complex, warm North African spice blend whose name translates from Arabic as "head of the shop" or "top shelf," representing a merchant's finest offering
It delivers an aromatic, rich, sweet, and earthy taste with a warm depth rather than heavy heat.
There is no single recipe; blends often combine a dozen to over forty spices.
Core ingredients usually include cumin, coriander, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, and peppercorns.
We enjoyed it so much with the spinach and garbanzos that I decided to use it with chicken. I rubbed chicken thighs well with ReH and a little salt and browned them in olive oil. Then I removed the chicken to another dish and sauteed onions, sweet peppers, garlic.
When they were getting soft, I stirred in a lot of cut up tomatoes--some cherry tomatoes and some regular and browned them a bit. I also added a bit more of the spice. When the veg began to get goopy, I returned the chicken to the pot, added a bit of hot water so that the chicken was half covered, put a lid on the pot and let it simmer about a half an hour.
I served it over noodles (though a grain would be nice too) and topped it with sour cream (yogurt would also work) and chopped up green onions.Accompanied by a salad--spinach, plums, blue cheese, and vinaigrette--it was really good.
