Lamb Tagine Recipe

with dried prunes and apricots

This Lamb Tagine Recipe can be prepared in advance and heated just before serving. It is also ideal if you are after freezer meals as this dish freezes successfully.

A tagine is a Moroccan casserole dish with a conical lid - the idea being that the moisture from the lamb stew recipe collects in the lid and falls back into the meat. Here the lamb tagine recipe is prepared in a large casserole dish without compromising the flavor. The lamb is given a long, slow cook which produces a succulent result. The dried fruits are add towards the end of the cooking process so that they don't disintegrate.

You may use lamb shanks or any other stewing cut of lamb, for example, neck.

Ingredients:

It is worth making this lamb tagine in a large wide casserole pan which is suitable for the hob as well. This way, you save on washing up. The casserole pan must have a lid.

Method:

1. Heat the oven to 300° F / 150° C.
2. Try to remove as much fat from the lamb shanks as possible. Brown the lamb shanks all over in a little oil. Don't attempt to cook them through - you just want them to get a deep color which will flavor the dish. Set aside.
3. Pour the excess oil out of the pan, until you have just 2 - 3 tablespoons left. Brown the onions in the remaining oil until they are soft and brown. Again, this will flavor the tagine.
4. Add the ginger, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, tumeric and cayenne pepper to the onions. Cook for a minute but be careful that they don't burn.
5. Add the stock and finally add the lamb shanks back to the casserole dish.
6. Bake for about 2 hours. Add the apricots and prunes and bake for a further 30 - 40 minutes. The lamb shanks should be succulent but the apricots and prunes should still hold their shape.
7. If your tagine is fatty, allow the dish to cool and then skim the fat off the top. Gently reheat before serving.
8. To toast the almonds, heat a frying pan without any oil in it. Dry fry the almonds for a few minutes until they just begin to color. Remove them from the pan. Due to the high oil content in the nuts, they will continue to cook for another minute so be careful that you don't burn them.
9. Just before serving, sprinkle the nuts over the tagine.
10. Serve this lamb tagine recipe with couscous.

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