Lamb & Apricot Tagine

Lamb & Apricot Tagine

Lamb
Moroccan, Main Dish

Serves 4-6

Incredibly fragrant with lamb and spices, this sweet and savory stew makes a truly memorable main dish. It needs only steamed couscous or rice to serve.

Ingredients #

  • 2 teaspoons + 1 teaspoon ras-al-hanout (this really makes the dish – you can find it at World Market or online)
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ¾ teaspoon black pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon white pepper
  • ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
  • ¼ crumbled saffron threads (or add a bit of turmeric instead)
  • 3 cups chicken stock
  • 3 lbs lamb stew meat (boneless shoulder cut into 1” cubes)
  • 1 large onion, finely chopped or coarsely grated
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 three-inch cinnamon sticks
  • ½ stick (1/4 cup) of unsalted butter
  • 3 stems of cilantro
  • ½ cup golden raisins
  • 1 cup dried pitted apricots, cut into quarters
  • ½ cup slivered almonds
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions #

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a small bowl, mix 2 teaspoons of ras-al-hanout with the salt, black pepper, white pepper, ground ginger. Toss the spice mixture with the lamb to coat evenly.

Heat a large skillet over med-high heat. Add the butter. When the foam subsides, add the cinnamon stick and ½ of the lamb. Brown well on all sides and transfer the lamb to a tagine or a covered casserole. Now brown the other half of the lamb and transfer it to the same dish. Add the onion and garlic to the skillet and sautee until soft and translucent. Transfer to the tagine or casserole. Put the skillet back on the heat and add 1 cup of chicken stock. Bring this to a simmer and scrape up all of the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the saffron. Pour this all in the tagine or Dutch oven.

Add the rest of the chicken stock, the cilantro stalks and the cinnamon sticks. Braise in the oven (with cover on) until the lamb is fairly tender, about 45 minutes.

Add the raisins, apricots, almonds, honey and ground cinnamon. Stir and continue cooking, uncovered, for another half-hour. The sauce should be somewhat reduced and slightly thickened.

Fish out the cilantro stalks. Serve tagine over couscous or rice.