Insalata’s Restaurant: Recipe | restaurant info | reviews |
Recipe Name: Lamb Tagine with Pumpkin, Golden Raisins, and Chickpeas
Recipe Chef: Heidi Insalata Krahling
Type of Cuisine: Mediterranean
Food Category: Main Course
Recipe Description:
We use non-classic cooking methods for most of our stews. Traditional French cooking teaches that a classic braise begins by searing the meat, deglazing with wine or stock, scraping up the fond, and then covering with liquid. Contrast this to the Moroccan cooking technique of slowly cooking meat in stock or water with aromatics and spices. I use butternut squash in this recipe, but you can use any type of winter squash. You can make the tagine hours ahead; let the tagine cool to room temperature, so that the flavorful liquid can soak into the meat. The result is a velvety succulent stew. Serve with spiced couscous.
Serves: 10-12
Ingredients:
5 lb lamb shoulder, cut into 1-inch cubes, free of fat
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
2 tablespoons ground coriander
2 tablespoons ground cumin seed
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 good pinch saffron, ground in spice grinder
1 cinnamon stick
1 tablespoon salt
1 1/2 lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
10 cups chicken stock or low-sodium, good quality, store-bought chicken stock
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 cups medium diced yellow onions (about 3 onions)
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3 teaspoons minced garlic cloves (about 3 cloves)
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup cooked garbanzo beans
2 tablespoons honey
3/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts for garnish
Chopped fresh cilantro for garnish