Lamb tagine

Lamb tagine serves 4

Ingredients
1 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp ground black pepper
1½ tbsp paprika
1½ tbsp ground ginger
1 tbsp turmeric
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 x shoulder of lamb, trimmed and cut into 5cm/2in chunks (about
1.1kg/2½lb meat in total)
2 large onions, grated
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp argan oil (see note)
3 cloves garlic, crushed
570ml/1 pinttomato juice
2 x 400g tinned chopped tomatoes
115g/4oz dried apricots, cut in half
55g/2oz dates, cut in half
55g/2oz sultanas or raisins
85g/3oz flaked almonds
1 tsp saffron stamens, soaked in cold water
600ml/1 pint lamb stock
1 tbsp clear honey
2 tbsp coriander, roughly chopped
2 tbsp flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped



Place the cayenne, black pepper, paprika, ginger, turmeric and cinnamon into a small bowl and mix to combine. Place the lamb in a large bowl and toss together with half of the spice mix. Cover and leave overnight in the fridge.
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tbsp of argan oil in a large tagine. Add the grated onion and the remaining spice mix and cook over a gentle heat for 10 minutes so that the onions are soft but not coloured. Add the crushed garlic for the final 3 minutes.
In a separate frying pan, heat the remaining oil and brown the cubes of lamb on all sides then add the browned meat to the tagine. De-glaze the frying pan with ¼ pint of tomato juice and add these juices to the tagine.
Add the remaining tomato juice, chopped tomatoes, apricots, dates, raisins or sultanas, flaked almonds, saffron, lamb stock and honey to the casserole dish. Bring to the boil, cover and cook for 2-2½ hours or until the meat is meltingly tender, sprinkle over the chopped herbs. Serve.

Chicken Tagine with Olives and Preserved Lemons

For 2-3 people

* 1 small chicken around 1 kg, quartered
* 2 large sliced onions
* 1 tsp. powdered ginger
* one pinch of saffron (best if pistils)
* 2 preserved lemons
* 1 cup green olives
* 1 cup lemon juice
* sea salt
* pepper
* 1 cup water
* Argan oil

One hour before preparation, marinate chicken with sea salt, lemon juice and a cup of water in a large bowl.

Heat Argan oil in a large pot or tagine. Cook sliced onions until they start to change color. Add ginger, pepper, saffron and chicken. Add water. Remove the pulp of the preserved lemon and mix it in the Cuisinart. Add to the pot. Cut the skin into quarters. Add to the Tagine. Cook on a low flame until the chicken is soft and easily falls off of the bone. You don’t want it to be too dry, or too chewy. Add olives before serving.
And Enjoy!