Wanderlust

Passport & Plate - Lamb Tagine with nan

Morocco | Wednesday, March 12, 2014 | 5 photos

Ingredients
Lamb Tagine
Serves - 3
Olive oil to fry - 2 tbps
Lamb (Shoulder) - 500 gms
Red onion - 1 (Sliced)
Paprika -1 tbsp
Ground ginger - 1 tbsp
Cinnamon sticks - 3
Salt to taste
Sugar - 1 tsp
Lamb stock - 2 pints
Honey- 1 tbsp
Prunes - 10
Almond flakes to garnish
Coriander to garnish


Nan bread
Makes - 8
Self raising flour - 1.5 cups
Lukewarm water - ¾ cup
Yeast - 2 tsps
Plain yoghurt- 2 tsps
Oil to mix the dough

 

How to prepare this recipe
Lamb Tagine
1. Heat olive oil in a deep heavy bottom pot. Cut lamb shoulder into small cubes and add to the pot. I kept the heat at 4 (6 being maximum).
2. Add the red onions, paprika, ginger, cinnamon sticks, salt and sugar. Let everything cook for 15 mins.
3. Add lamb stock. Let the lamb slowly cook in the juices for 2.5 hours (I cooked at heat level 2). Keep stirring in between to make sure, the lamb doesn’t stick to the bottom.
4. When the lamb starts to appear soft and easy to break with a fork (at 1.5 hour time point), add prunes and honey. Let it cook in the juices for another hour. I had a bone piece in the pot and when the meat started falling off the bone, I was sure it was nice and tender and ready to serve
5. Garnish with almonds and coriander.


Nan Bread
1. In a deep bowl, add the above ingredients. Put some oil on your hands while mixing the dough. That way, the dough will not stick to your hands. At the end, the dough should be soft to touch. Then cover it with little oil. Let it sit for 30 mins.
2. Put some flour on the kitchen table. Make small balls from the dough and roll them to shape like an ellipse.
3. In the oven, I covered the grill with an aluminum foil. Then preheated the oven to 200 degree Celsius and put the nan on the grill and cooked them till they start to rise and turn golden. Turned them around and did the same on the other side.

 

The story behind this recipe
I was in visiting the beautiful city of Granada in Spain for a conference. I am usually a lone traveler but somehow wherever I go, I always end up making new friends and exploring places with them. So, it was one of those long days, where all of us had sat on our bottoms for 9 hours listening to other people. Of course, in the evening, all of us were craving to move our almost numb limbs, so we decided to go for a walk around the hills surrounding the Alhambra palace. It was one of those sultry yet pleasant evenings. We all were so mesmerized by the city and its laid back appeal that we didn’t realize how long we have been walking. The walk was relaxing and there were no maps. There was something almost magical about those narrow cobbled streets that were a grand maze, linking one street to the other. And then out of nowhere, we noticed this tiny almost hidden restaurant. Ahh..did I mention we were almost 10 of us and the restaurant looked like it could accommodate only 10!! Anyways, we still went in, starving and exhausted. I do not know about the others but I had never had Moroccan food in my life. So, without any prejudice, I just ordered what looked nice on the menu, Lamb tagine with nan. Somehow, the name itself had some salivating effect on me. And then ofcourse, when the food arrived, I was just speechless. The aroma, presentation and of course the great service, all made my first Moroccan food experience simply fantastic. After my return home, I just could not get that flavor out of my mind. So, I decided to try making the dish with my recollection of the flavors. I was quite pleasantly surprised to see that I could recreate the same dish as what I had satiated in Granada.