Delicious Main Dish with Honey –
Moroccan Lamb Stew
One of the most interesting things I’m learning as I’m researching honey recipes is that honey has been a staple ingredient in many cuisines. I’ve found Mediterranean, Mexican, Indian, Island and other honey recipes over time. Tonight’s recipe comes from Morocco and is a main dish. The name for this Moroccan Lamb Stew is Mrouzia and often is cooked in a tagine (a kind of covered casserole dish used in Morocco). We can’t wait to try this recipe with some brown rice pilaf and perhaps a tomato/cucumber salad.
Grass Fed Lamb Is Healthy
One of my health mentors only eats organic grass fed lamb, when she eats meat. So, I started to research whether grass fed lamb is a healthy choice, and here is what I found.
The Recipe
Moroccan Lamb Stew
Ingredients
- 3 lbs of lamb (shoulder, neck or shanks) cut into 3" pieces
- 2 teaspoons Ras El Hanout
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads, crumbled
- ____________________________
- Ras El Hanout:
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamon
- 2 teaspoons ground mace
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ` teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground anise seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- ______________________________
- 2 medium onions, grated
- 3 cloves of garlic, pressed or finely chopped
- 2 small pieces (2 to 3") of cinnamon stick
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 3 cups water
- ________________________________
- 1 1/2 cups dark golden or sultana raisins
- 1/2 cup Bee Wild raw honey, or to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup blanched almonds
Instructions
- Make Ras El Hanout by putting all ingredients in a bowl and mixing well. We suggest you store this spice mixture in a pint canning jar with lid.
- Make a dry rub with the first set of spices, rub the lamb with the spices, place them in a sealed plastic bag, and refrigerate overnight.
- Soak raisins in lukewarm water until they plump. Drain the raisins.
- Brown the meat, onions, and garlic in butter. Use a heavy duty pan (I like ceramic coated cast iron.)
- Add the water and bring to a boil. Lower the temperature, cover the pan, and simmer the meat, onions, and garlic for about 2 hours.
- Add the drained raisins, honey, and cinnamon.
- You may need to add a bit more water to cover the raisins.
- Cover the pan again and cook for another half hour.
- Toast the almonds.
- When the cooking time is over, serve the Lamb Stew, sprinkled with toasted almonds.
