Tagine hater



Yes you (Morro)can try it to.

Oh I've not been one for a tagine. My Mum is a tagine queen. She's just come back from 10 days in Marrakesh and bombarded me with boak-worthy pictures of her tagine of the day. Anne has not been shy of her flagrant promotion of the North African dish either.

It all stemmed from my one experience of lamb tagine about ten years ago in my work's restaurant. Mahooosive prunes and apricots all over the shop next to mahooosive chunks of meat. Fruit and meat? Dirty b*******! I've been assured that not all tagines have fruit in them and really they are a sweet, sour stewy type dish - although why you'd want to eat a stew in 40c heat I don't know.

So to shut them up and to kind of give them a "I told you so" moment I made up my own tagine. I have no idea if this tastes authentic or not but I liked it I tell you! Now I suppose a spa holiday to Marrakesh for research might be the next step?

 

Kinda Lamb Chop Tagine

Serves 2 greedy adults or 3 normal adults who don't live in our house

6 lamb chops

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp ground cumin

lots of black pepper and salt

1 tbsp harissa paste

1 lemon

1 onion chopped

3 garlic cloves crushed

1 tbsp honey

35g ready to eat apricots cut up so teeny tiny a fairy could eat it

400g tin chopped toms

300ml chicken stock

200g tinned chick peas

1 large carrot chopped small

1 yellow pepper chopped into chunks

Herbs such as mint, coriander, parsley

Rub half the spices into the lamb and leave it to marinade for as long as possible

Heat some oil in a wide lidded pan and seal the meat on both sides, take out

In the oil and lamb juices, fry the onion for 5 mins, add the garlic and the rest of the spices. Cook for 3 mins. Add the toms with the stock, carrot, pepper, honey and apricots. Bring to boil and fast simmer for 15 minutes. Turn down heat and add the chops. Simmer with lid on for 20 minutes or until lamb is tender. Serve with couscous and herbs.

Sian