After the pistachio crusted rack of lamb I was thinking about lamb even more. My thoughts naturally came the the Moroccan lamb tagine that I made and enjoyed so much last year. This lamb tagine uses a wonderful blend of Moroccan spices to season the meat before it is braised until it is nice and fall apart tender. Near the end of the cooking some dried fruits and honey are added for a bit of sweetness and some harissa is added for some chili heat. The combination of the flavourful slow braised lamb with the spices and the sweet dried fruit and the warmth is simply amazing and I was salivating at the thought of making it again this year. This time I changed things up just a little. The last time that I made this I used various dried fruits and I chopped them up so that they melted into the sauce. This year I decided to focus on apricots and I left them whole to add a nice change in texture and bursts of apricot flavour to the stew. I also decided to drop the carrots in favour of having the vegetables on the side.
This years apricot lamb tagine easily lived up to my memories of last years and I was thoroughly satisfied! The lamb was perfectly fall apart tender and oh so tasty. All of the flavours in the pot had plenty of time to mingle and get to know each other over the hours of simmering and the lamb was infused with the wonderful results. Despite the strong flavours in the sauce the taste of the lamb still came through and it really works well in this dish. Of course I served the lamb tagine on a bed of light and fluffy whole wheat couscous and I garnished it with some chopped cilantro and pistachios.
I hope everyone has a great Easter!
Apricot Lamb Tagine
ingredients
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 pinch saffron
- 1 teaspoon lemon (zest)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 pound lamb (cut into bite sized pieces)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 onion (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon garlic (grated)
- 1 tablespoon ginger (grated)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste (I used chopped sun dried tomatoes)
- 1-2 cups beef stock
- 3/4 cup dried apricots
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoons harissa
- 1/4 cup pistachios (chopped, optional)
- 1/4 cup cilantro (chopped, optional)
- 1/4 cup parsley (chopped, optional)
- 1 cup Greek style yogurt (optional)
directions
- Mix the paprika, turmeric, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, cayenne pepper, saffron, lemon zest and oil in a ziplock bag along with the lamb, mix well and marinate the fridge for a few hours to overnight.
- Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-hight heat add the lamb, brown well on all sides and set aside.
- Add the onion and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.
- Add the garlic and ginger and saute for about a minute.
- Add the lamb and tomato paste and beef stock, bring to a boil, reduce the meat and simmer covered until the lamb is fall apart tender, about 2-3 hours.
- Add the apricots, raisins and more beef stock to cover.
- Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Add the honey and harissa.
- Serve on couscous and garnished with pistachios, cilantro, parsley and Greek yogurt.
Slow Cooker: Implement step 1, optionally implement steps 2-4, place everything except the garnishes in the slow cooker and cook on low for 6-10 hours or high for 2-4 hours.
Moroccan Lamb Tagine
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Beef Rendang
Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Olives and Preserved Lemons
Artichoke and Fava Bean Tagine
Moroccan Nectarine and Plum Chicken Tagine
Braised Short Rib Ragu
Ossobuco Tagine
Pumpkin and Chicken Tagine
Jamaican Style Jerk Beef Stew
Beef and Barley Soup
I’m drooling. I’m looking at the list of ingredients and wonder if we could use beef because some people in my family don’t eat lamb.
I am full from dinner and just got hungry all over again. This is a recipe to bookmark. And, your photo came out great.
Happy Easter to you! Great dish. It is a good time of year to stock up on lamb…my grocery store had lots.
Happy Easter Kevin…wow, so many flavors and textures in this dish. It looks fabulous!
That looks so decadently hearty even though I don’t like lamb, my mouth is watering.
I’m still wanting to try lamb. Hard to get around here and when it does make an appearance it is so darn expensive. I need to just believe I will love it and it will justify the cost 🙂
Oooooh … sounds great Kevin! It looks delicious, too!
Happy Easter!!!
Kevin this looks really good – I have it bookmarked!
Apricot and lamb is a novel combo there..woul dlove to taste the flavour.
I love tagines and Noroccan food! Yours looks so good and tasty!
Cheers,
Rosa
This looks really good! The colour of the gravy is so rich and delicious.
oh! this looks lovely. i love moroccan food, and the combo of sweet and savory.
dorie greenspan just did a recipe for apricot lamb tagine this week too! great minds 🙂
I love a tagine! Especially with dried apricots, yum!
Happy Easter! I’ve always been meaning to get down to doing a tagine. Yours look really delish, love the combination of lamb and apricots.
I’m not a huge fan of tagines, and its really hard to tempt me to have one… but yours looks extremely delicious! Well done!
Those ingredients are very enticing!
this looks so good kevin. lamb is perfect here and i can totally taste the robust flavor against the sweetness of the apricots.
wonderful, I adore tagines, and yours look amazing.
Happy Easter to you too!
This looks delectable. I love lamb but have only ever had it at Indian/Middle Eastern restaurants. Maybe it’s time I try to make it myself?
Oh Kevin this sounds to die for thanks for sharing I have grown to love the lamb.
What a beautiful dish, Kevin. I love all the flavors in the sauce and am very fond of lamb. Can’t wait to try this recipe.
I LOVE TAGINES :))
Looks like yours was a totalsuccess, your picture is beautiful and really conveys the yumminess of it. Spotted the link to the rendang post as well :))
Ah, and happy Easter, passover and anything else I would not know about. Or in a line, enjoy your 4 days weekend ;)))) I’m sure it will yield lots of cooking action :)))
Delicious! this looks great! 🙂
Wow. This looks and sounds like a delicious meal. I love the photo!
That sounds so delicious, what a tempting picture!
This looks beautiful! I’ve been looking for a new way to cook lamb besides roasting a rack of lamb as I usually do. I can’t wait to try this out. Thanks!
I love lamb and this looks and sounds just delicious. Great job 🙂
I am not much into lamb…but this dish sounds great!
Ummm Kevin… do you want to move into my spare bedroom in LA and cook for me?
Your recipes are amazing!
Another favorite of mine. I love Moroccan food.
Cheers,
elra
We need a tangine stat.
I would love a big bowl of this gorgeous lamb dish. Yum!
That looks fantastic Kevin, definitely something I will attempt.
That looks awesome, Kevin! Lamb week indeed!
Apricot and Lamb sounds a great combo! Happy Easter!
Looks amazing Kevin – I love all the layers of flavor.
Lamb is the perfect meat for curries and other spicy dishes, as no matter what you throw at it, the lamb infuses the flavors while retaining its own character. I love the look and sound of this. Great job, Kevin.
Thanks so much for your comments–I really love your food, and so appreciate your coming to my site. This lamb tangine looks yummo, and I bet chicken (remember that Silver Palate chicken with apricots and prunes?)…and pork…would work too. I’m still thinking of that rack and the pistachios!
I adore lamb meat and this one looks so hearty. Yogurt is a great idea to serve with it.
i’ve been wanting to try a tangine, this looks amazing!!
I so love lamb…but no one in my household likes it. So I only eat it when I’m in a restaurant. Kevin, judging by all your meal posts, you won’t ever have to go to a restaurant again. You eat so well!
This sounds incredibly tasty! Ive been wanting to try a tangine for some time!
Thanks for sharing!
This looks great. I love lamb but for reason just don’t make it often. I’ve got to try this one. Happy Easter!
An exotic blend of ingredients…sounds real tasty.
This is so gorgeous and mouthwatering! I love lamb and we often make tagines. I am partial to the sweet/savory but have always used prunes. This is yet another of your recipes I am printing out to try!
Beautiful!.. love the exotic moroccan spices.. i am big moroccan food fan.
Hey, I just tried out your dish and it was fabulous! I am excited to experiment with other recipes on your site. Keep cooking!
This looks fabulous Kevin. I love tagines and this look a most delicious one!
I love lamb and Moroccan flavors. This looks great!
Lamb is a staple at Easter in Italy!
Happy Easter – Buona Pasqua!!!
I made it yesterday for Easter and it was fantastic. Thanks for the recipe.
Wow that looks sooo good.
This tagine is great! I love the flavors you incorporate in the dish. Apricot is lovely with spices. You also have a great photo with this! Awesome!
This looks so delicious!
Hi Kevin! Lamb question for you: what cut of lamb have you used for your stews/tagines? shoulder? leg? I just have had a hard time finding one that isn’t too fatty, and I ususally end us trimming about half of the lamb away stuck to the fat.
Thanks!
Marta: My butcher has what he calls “stewing lamb” which is already cubed and has already had the excess fat trimmed. It is really convenient and relatively cheap compared to the other cuts of lamb. I believe that it is the shoulder but I may be mistaken.
I made this tonight (with chicken instead of lamb, because lamb is expensive and I am stingy) and it was wonderful. Thanks for the recipe!
I used this parts of this recipe in a trainee restaurant at college! All th reviews from the customers were GREAT! and it tasted divine!! Love the blog keep it up 🙂
http://www.bittersweetbigarade.blogspot.com
I made this recipe for my Passover Seder this year. Just AMAZING! Thank you! I made a few slights variations. I did not use the harissa since I've got some people who don't like spicy. Also, I added some white meat chicken to the dish: same spice rub, browned it in a pan and added to the stew together with the honey for the final 20 minutes of cooking. For everyone whose been thinking about making it: Go for it!
I made this, modified to use chicken breast instead of lamb, and it was excellent. Thanks for the recipe.
Kevin:
How can you marinated 1 lb. of meat in a tbsp. of oil and all those spices?
Have you got the measurements mixed up?
CharlesR: I get into it with my hands and mix it all in! Enjoy!
I actually made this.So many other people have said they were gong to,but I saw this and had everything on hand,but harissa. I used leftover leg of lamb. It smelled so good that I completely forgot to add the apricots. This was sooo good.Next time I will make some harissa, and remember the apricots.
I have never commented on a recipe before – but time and time again I come back here and cook this tagine and it is FABULOUS. It opened the door to moroccan food for me and I ended up serving a huge moraccan feast for a dinner party and this was the main dish – thank-you so much!