Sweet lamb stew with honey, almonds and apricots. Traditional North African mrouzia tagine.
I recently made a sweet lamb stew with honey, almonds and apricots following an article in the NY Times. The stew is a traditional lamb tagine called mrouzia, which is prepared throughout North Africa during Ramadan.
I had several issues with the NY Times recipe, the first being that even though the recipe calls for 3 pounds of lamb, if you watch the video instructions on the NY Times website, the chef clearly uses at least 4 pounds of lamb and is using it plus 6 cups of broth. I only used 2 pounds of lamb, reduced the required broth by a third, and it still took way too long to get the right consistency.
Eventually I screwed up and used regular whole raw almonds instead of blanched almonds (without shell). I don’t think it makes much of a difference, but every recipe I’ve reviewed calls for blanched almonds.
The stew was really terrific, especially after I balanced the sweetness a bit with some freshly squeezed lemon juice. It is very aromatic and very rich. What follows are the proportions of ingredients I would use the next time I make this stew – less broth, a lot less honey, and a little lemon to balance out the sweetness.
Lamb stew with almonds and apricots
ingredients
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3 pounds lamb shoulder or shank, trimmed and cut into 2 1/2 inch cubes
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1 teaspoon ground ginger
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1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
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1 teaspoon of cinnamon
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1/4 teaspoon turmeric
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1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
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1/4 teaspoon cardamom
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1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
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1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
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1/4 teaspoon cloves
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1/2 cup water
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1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
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2 medium onions, finely chopped
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2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
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2 cinnamon sticks
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3 cups chicken broth or water
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1 1/2 cups dried apricots, roughly chopped or raisins
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1 1/2 cups almonds, whole and blanched
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1/3 cup honey
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1-2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (optional)
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1 cup carrots, sliced into 1/2-inch thick slices
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1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped
method
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Marinate lamb:
In a bowl, combine the ginger, pepper, cinnamon, turmeric, cayenne pepper, coriander, cardamom, nutmeg, cloves, and water and mix well. Add the meat and rub in the paste, spreading evenly. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
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Cooking onions with garlic and cinnamon:
In a Dutch oven or other heavy saucepan with a lid, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, and cinnamon sticks and cook until onions are translucent and mixture is fragrant.
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Add meat, marinade, broth:
Add the marinated meat (including the marinade) to the saucepan, then the chicken broth. Bring the broth to a boil and skim off any foam that may appear.
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Simmer until tender:
Reduce heat, cover and let simmer, stirring occasionally. Add water if the pot gets too dry. Simmer until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours, longer if needed.
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Add apricots, almonds, honey, carrots:
Add the apricots, almonds, honey, and carrots and simmer, uncovered, stirring often to avoid burning, until the flesh is very tender and almost falling apart, about 30 minutes longer.
The sauce should reduce to a syrupy glaze. At this point, taste and add lemon juice to desired level. The lemon juice balances the sweetness of honey and apricots.
Note: This recipe can be prepared ahead of time up to this point. Allow to cool, refrigerate and serve within a few days.
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Surcharge:
Stir in the chopped parsley and transfer to a preheated serving platter. Serve immediately with couscous or rice.
Links:
A North African Sweet Lamb Mrouzia recipe
Epic version of this recipe
Yet another honey lamb recipe
