Moroccan Inspired Lamb Tagine

Ingredients (serves 2 to 4 people depending on how hungry you are)

For the marinate:

  • 1 tsp ras el hanut spice
  • 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp of garlic and ginger paste (or equivalent). I like to use the frozen cubes you can find in the asian freezer sections in most supermarkets 😉
  • 2 sprigs of rosemary, stalks removed and chopped finely
  • 1 tsp dry mint
  • salt and pepper to taste

You will also need:

  • 250 g lamb shoulder fillet (or any other marbled cut of lamb)
  • 2 onions chopped finely
  • 1 large carrot chopped finely
  • 1 tbsp of garlic and ginger paste
  • 1 tsp ras el hanut spice
  • 1 tsp hot smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 preserved lemon chopped finely
  • 4-5 chopped dried prunes
  • 2-3 tbsp of ground almonds
  • small bunch of coriander
  • heavy based oven proof casserole dish

Cooking Method:

Cut the lamb into small chunks and marinate overnight in all the marinate ingredients.

Get all the rest of the ingredients together. I always do this so I don’t forget anything. Chop up all the veggies and put your spices ready in a bowl. Preheat the oven to 180C.

In a large casserole dish heat a tbsp of olive oil and sautee the onions with the carrots for a few minutes. Try not to brown them, but just sweat them. Add the garlic and ginger and all the spices and cook for further 2  minutes. Next add the lamb and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the tomatoes, prunes, almonds and preserved lemon to the dish and bring to the boil. You might want to add a few dashes of water of you think it looks too thick (not enough liquid). It will cook down.

Cover and transfer the tagine to the oven and cook for 2 1/2 hours. When the tagine is ready, sprinkle generously with coriander and serve with olive, pepper and lemon bulgur or cous cous. I prefer bulgur as it tastes very similar but is a lot healthier. Whilst cous cous is made in a similar way to pasta, bulgur is a grain.

Yummy!

I hope you enjoy my recipe, please let me know what you think!

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