Lamb and Orange Tagine

 

 
Timbuktu, fabled caravan city, across the dunes and sands of time. Nothing like news of an Islamic insurgency and colonial power-backed interdiction to remind us of exotic locales. Long before there was a war on the West, long before there really even was a West, there was culture in Timbuktu. Scholarly learning, writing and literature, trading, salt, gold, they say two-thirds of medieval gold traveled through Timbuktu to North Africa and on to Europe. 
  
The culinary history, not so much. The current day cuisine of surrounding Mali is based on cereal grains, rice and millet, grown in the flood plains of the seasonal Niger River and supplemented with edible leaves, tomato or peanut sauces and accompanied by grilled meat. However, at the other end of the caravan route is another area of ancient mystery, also held in the West as an exotic locale.
   
Morocco today retains much of our exotic imaginations. The caravans from Timbuktu would travel north across the Sahara, through the Kasbahs of the Atlas Mountains, and into the ancient Moroccan cities of Marrakech, Fez and Meknes. This is the land of the tagine, a meat stew cooked in a conical clay vessel. This is the land of 100 ways to cook chicken tagine, of cumin, coriander and cardamon, where cinnamon mixes with savory meats, the land of couscous. 
  
I love to make tagines, and often make a chicken tagine with apricots and almonds. But tonight, I wanted something different. Lamb, but also something brighter. Winter still holds its grip on us, and so I wanted something to brighten the dark nights. This lamb tagine features oranges in the main, but also honey, ginger, golden raisins, savory and sweet, exotic and comforting all at once. That is the wonderful thing about a tagine, it can remind you of far away, but make you feel safe and at home. Try this lamb tagine recipe, it is sublime. Serves 2.
    
Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lb lamb, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1/4 tsp cardamon
1 stick cinnamon
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (if desired)
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 can diced tomatoes, drained
zest of one orange
1 tbsp honey
1/4 cup golden raisins
slices of 1 orange
1/4 cup toasted almonds
salt/pepper
1 cup couscous
juice of 1 orange
   
Directions:
In a tagine, or dutch oven, over medium high heat, warm the oil, season the lamb with salt and pepper, add lamb to the pan and brown on all sides, in batches if necessary, for 5 minutes. Remove the lamb, set aside, and reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion and soften for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cook for 30 seconds to release the flavor, then add the cumin, coriander, ginger, cardamon, cinnamon stick and red pepper flakes (if desired). Stir and allow the flavors to release for 1 minute. Add 2 cups of stock and scrape up the cooked bits on the bottom of the pan. Add the browned lamb and any juices, tomatoes, orange zest and honey and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat as necessary to maintain a simmer. Cook for 30 minutes.
In a separate small sauce pan, bring the orange juice and remaining 1 cup of chicken stock to a boil. Remove from the heat and stir in the couscous. Cover and let sit for at least 5 minutes. 
Meanwhile, add the golden raisins and orange slices to the tagine. Cover and let cook 5 minutes while the couscous sits. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as desired.
To serve, spoon couscous into a bowl. Top with lamb tagine and toasted almonds. Enjoy.