This lamb tagine is full of delicious rich flavours from the combination of succulent, sweet lamb, spices and fruit. It is so simple and is a great dish if you are having friends over as it has a richer, more exotic flavour than your normal beef stew. The dish originates from Morocco where it would be cooked slowly in a traditional ceramic or clay dish called a tagine. I am currently bonding big-time with my Slow Cooker – it buys me so much time and freedom and I cannot recommend it enough. This dish is one of my favourites done in the Slow Cooker (Crockpot) – the recipe is the same whether it is cooked in the oven or in the Slow Cooker so instructions for both are below.  The only hassle can be dicing the lamb but it is so worth it!

(recipe is adapted from one in the Avoca Cookbook No.2)

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
2 tablespoons well-seasoned flour
1kg leg / shoulder lamb diced and trimmed of fat
olive oil
1 onion diced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
6cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
bunch of fresh coriander leaves roughly chopped & stalks finely chopped
1 dessertspoon treacle
handful of sultanas
half 400g tin of chopped tomatoes

Conventional oven

• Preheat the oven to 180°C / Gas 4
• Mix all the spices together with the seasoned flour and toss the meat in this mixture
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in an ovenproof casserole and brown the meat in batches removing it after each batch
• Adding more oil if necessary, gently sauté the onion for 10 mins until softened
• Add the garlic, ginger and coriander stalks and toss together so they are well coated in the oil
• Add in the lamb and barely cover with water
• Add the treacle, sultanas and tomatoes.
• Bring to the boil.
• Transfer to the preheated oven for 1 hour or until cooked.
• Check halfway through cooking, you may need to add a little more water.
• Serve with some toasted flaked almonds, coriander and couscous or boiled rice.

Slow Cooker*

• Mix all the spices together with the seasoned flour and toss the meat in this mixture
• Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in an ovenproof casserole and brown the meat in batches removing it after each batch
• Adding more oil if necessary, gently sauté the onion for 10 mins until softened
• Add the garlic, ginger and coriander stalks and toss together so they are well coated in the oil
• Transfer this mixture and the lamb to the slow cooker
• Barely cover with water and add the treacle, sultanas and tomatoes
• Cook for 3 – 4 hours on High, 5 – 6 hours on Medium or 6 – 8 hours on Low
• Serve with some toasted flaked almonds, coriander and couscous or boiled rice.

* If you have a Slow Cooker with a removable internal pot (sear & stew) you can brown the meat and sauté the onion in the pot and follow the same instructions above. 

 

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