Moroccan Spiced Lamb Or Lamb Shanks W Lemon Prunes And Saffron Food

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 160°C/fan140°C/gas 3. Bash the cumin and coriander in a pestle and mortar or whizz together in a mini food processor, then add the ginger, garlic and salt, and work or whizz to a rough paste. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole (large enough for the lamb shanks to fit snugly) over a high heat. Add the lamb shanks and brown well all over. Remove and set aside.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onions to the casserole and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the spice paste and harissa and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and stock, return the shanks to the casserole and stir together. Bring to the boil and drop in the cinnamon stick. Cover with a lid, transfer to the oven and cook for 2 hours, turning the lamb once or twice.
• Stir the dried fruit into the casserole and return to the oven, uncovered, for a further 30 minutes or until the lamb is almost falling off the bone. Serve with hot couscous flavoured with mint, coriander, preserved lemon and lemon juice.

MOROCCAN SPICED LAMB OR LAMB SHANKS W. LEMON, PRUNES AND SAFFRON

Steps:

• Season lamb with salt and pepper, dust lightly with flour.
• Heat half oil in pan and brown lamb. (Do this in batches if necessary so the meat does not "stew").
• Remove lamb and set aside.
• Heat remainder of oil and brown onions.
• Add garlic, cumin, coriander, ginger, paprika and harissa paste and cook 2 minutes.
• Add remaining flour, sugar, stock, lemon and tomatoes.
• Bring to boil.
• Return lamb to dish, bring back to boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes covered.
• Uncover and simmer a further 1 hour turning meat occasionally.
• Combine saffron with a little hot water to infuse.
• Skim excess fat from surface increase heat to medium-high and add saffron water.
• Cook further 30 minutes.
• In last 5 minutes of cooking add prunes.
• Sauce should be thick and meat very tender.
• Sprinkle over fresh coriander and serve.

LAMB SHANKS WITH CHICKPEAS & MOROCCAN SPICES

Steps:

• Soak the chickpeas overnight. Drain, tip into a saucepan and cover generously with fresh cold water. Bring to the boil, simmer for 45 minutes and drain.
• Heat the oil in a large casserole and brown the lamb all over. Remove and set aside. Pour off most of the fat, leaving 1 tablespoon in the dish, add the onions and fry for 8-10 minutes until soft.
• Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 3/fan oven 140C. Mix together the ginger, garlic, chillies, cumin, coriander, pepper and paprika. Add half of this to the onions, tip in the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. Put in the lamb and chickpeas, cover generously with water (about 850ml/11⁄2 pints), bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Cover and cook in the oven for 11⁄2-2 hours until the chickpeas are really tender. (You can prepare up to this stage the day before. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Bring back to simmering point before starting step 4.)
• Remove from the oven and stir in the remaining spice mixture, the saffron and cinnamon, carrots, apricots, honey and salt. Cover and return to the oven for 45 minutes-1 hour until the lamb is tender and the vegetables cooked. Scatter the almonds and coriander on top.

BRAISED MOROCCAN-STYLE LAMB WITH DRIED PRUNES, ALMONDS AND APRICOTS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Lay the lamb out, skin side down, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper and the thyme. Roll and tie well with butcher's string. Sprinkle the outside with 1/2 teaspoon of the pepper and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large oven-proof casserole. Add the lamb and brown on all sides. Remove lamb from pot. Add remaining tablespoon oil. Stir in onion, carrot, celery and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat until vegetables soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining teaspoon cumin, the rosemary and the red wine. Bring to a boil and cook about 3 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon and scraping browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Stir in the stock, tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Return the lamb to the pot, cover, place in the oven and bake until meat is almost tender, about 1 hour.
• Remove the casserole from the oven and take out the meat. Remove the vegetables from the pot with a slotted spoon and place them in a blender. Blend until smooth. Scrape the mixture back into the pot and stir well. Place over medium heat and cook about 5 minutes to thicken slightly. Return the meat to the sauce and surround with the almonds, prunes and apricots. Cover and bake until meat is very tender and fruit is soft, about 15 minutes.
• Remove lamb from the pot, cut and remove string and cut lamb into thin slices. If sauce is too thick, thin with a little additional broth. Divide the lamb among 8 plates and spoon some sauce over the top. Serve immediately, passing any remaining sauce separately.

SLOW COOKED MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan add lamb and cook until shanks are browned all over.
• Heat remaining olive oil in a large saucepan, add onion and garlic, cook until onion softens.
• Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and ginger, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, water, stock granules, paste, honey and chutney, bring to the boil, add lamb shanks, reduce heat to low, cook, covered, for approx 41/2-5 hours, until lamb is falling off the bone, turn shanks several time during cooking.
• About 10 Min's before the end of cooking, add apricots, stir to combine.
• Remove shanks and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Mix a little water with the cornflour, add to liquid, bring to the boil, stir until sauce becomes a gravy consistency, it will not be super thick.
• I served ours over couscous and poured the sauce around the dish.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat some olive oil in a pan, cook lamb until browned all over, drain.
• In a large saucepan or casserole dish (depending on whether you want to cook on the stove or in the oven.)Add some more olive oil, cook onion and garlic until onion softens, add cinnamon, cumin and coriander, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered until liquid has reduced by about half (it doesn't have to be precise). Add chicken stock and honey, bring to the boil, and reduce heat again.
• Return lamb to the pan and either cook covered in a moderate slow oven (170c) for about 1hr 30 minutes or on a low heat on the stove for the same time. Uncover dish and add the kumara, cook covered again for a further 50Min's to 1 hr until lamb is falling of the bone.
• Remove lamb and kumara from dish cover with foil to keep warm. Strain liquid into another pan, mix a little water with the cornflour, bring the sauce to a boil over a high heat add cornflour and stir until mixture thickens.
• To Serve: I served mine over spiced couscous topped with kumara and lamb and then poured the sauce over.

LAMB CHOPS WITH MOROCCAN SPICES

Steps:

• In a small bowl, stir together the 1/2 cup mint, coriander, garlic, paprika, cumin, black pepper, cayenne pepper, salt, lemon juice, and olive oil.
• Rub the mixture into the chops, coating evenly, and place in a non-aluminum container. Cover and marinate at cool room temperature for 2 hours or up to overnight in the refrigerator.
• Prepare a fire in a grill. If the chops are refrigerated, bring to room temperature.
• Place the chops on an oiled grill rack and grill, turning once, for 4 minutes per side for medium-rare, or until done to your liking.
• Transfer to a warmed platter or individual plates and sprinkle with mint, if using. Serve immediately.

MOROCCAN SPICED LAMB

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 220 degrees C/ 425 degrees F.
• In samll bowl, combine mint, apricots, dates, pine nuts, orange and lemon zests, and olive oil and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
• Press fruit mixture into leg cavity, tie with kitchen string to hold together. Spread harissa paste over leg and sprinkle with cumin seeds.
• Place leg of lamb in a roasting tin and roast in preheated oven 40 minutes per kilogram (20 minutes per pound) or until lamb is cooked to desired done-ness.
• Remove lamb from oven and let rest on cutting board a few minutes while you make the gravy.
• For gravy, put roasting tin on stove top and bring to a high heat. Stir in a teaspoon of harissa paste, (optional), a splash of red wine and enough water to bring it to a gravy-like consistency.
• Let gravy bubble and thicken until reduced by half.
• Carve lamb and serve with the gravy, bulgar wheat (kasha) aand a green salad.