A fruity lamb tagine ...

 There is a decided chill to the morning & evening air & thoughts turn to warming stews or tagines. Southern African cooking uses fruit in meat dishes which reflects the Malay heritage influences at the Cape 300 years ago. 

Some years back, Ms M (my sister in law & often travelling companion) & I did a fantastic tour of Morocco & the food was just sensational. The aroma from the tagines filled the markets & dining-rooms & it was inspirational combinations of sweet & savoury. 

These are some of the memories of that trip 

Exploring-moroccan-city-of-fes-fez

Time-stands-still-in-bakery-in-Al Jadida

jardin-majorelle-ysl-gardens-in Marrakech

The-portuguese-port-of-Al-Jadida-in Morocco

Making-time-to-travel-explore-new places

I have cooked from Tagine, Spicy stews from Morocco by Ghillie Basan many times over the years. Having some lamb in, I decided a fruity tagine would be perfect. I used lamb chops, not a shoulder of lamb & adjusted the recipe to take in to account the smaller portion. 

The meat was marinated in fresh garlic & ginger (grated), salt, chilli, cumin, olive oil, honey & half a freshly squeezed lemon. I cut an onion in  to the mixture & this was left in a bowl in the fridge for about 3 hours. 

The marinated lamb was fried to brown it, I added the onion & then lastly the remains of the marinade to the pan. This was then returned to the oven dish (I no longer have a tagine but a deep covered ceramic dish worked well.)

At this point I added about 8 prunes & some hot water, covered the dish & baked it for about 45 minutes. Lastly, I stirred in 2 quartered fresh figs & covered it while I made the cous cous. 

150g of cous cous in 250 ml of salted boiling water in a heat proof bowl. Cover & leave to absorb the liquid, stirred in a small knob of butter & fluffed it up. 

Served with the lamb on the cous cous base, alongside some garlic flatbread. The stew had formed a delicious rich dish that was perfect for cooler weather & it reminded me how much I enjoy fruity stews. 

I hope I am not the only one who enjoys spicy & fruity food. Thank you for stopping by, it is always appreciated. 

Dee