Le Creuset Slow Cooked Lamb & Apricot Tagine

| DIFFICULTY Easy | PREP TIME 10 minutes | COOK TIME 3 hour | SERVES 4 |

This traditional North African dish is named after the pot in which it is cooked in. Slow-cooking in this domed dish develops delicious flavours and beautifully tender meat, whilst locking in moisture and all the aromatics. Served alongside couscous to soak up all the rich sauce, this tagine is delicately sweetened by the addition of dried apricots and cinnamon - a great sharing meal to be enjoyed by the whole family.

For this recipe, you'll need a Le Creuset 27cm Cast Iron Tagine Dish

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tbsp rapeseed oil
• 500g lamb leg, diced
• 1 large red onion, diced
• 2 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tbsp ras el hanout paste
• 200g butternut squash, diced into 3cm cubes
• 1 small bunch coriander
• 500ml lamb stock
• 1 heaped tbsp soft brown sugar
• Sea salt & cracked black pepper
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 150g dried apricots 

TO SERVE

• A handful of Coriander, chopped
• Couscous 

METHOD

1. Place the tagine over a low to medium heat and warm the oil. In batches, brown off the lamb then set aside. If required, add a little more oil and then gently fry the onions for 5 - 6 minutes until they start to soften.
2. Add the garlic to the pan and fry for a further minute before sprinkling in the cumin, cinnamon and paprika. Toast the spice for 2 minutes, stirring regularly to ensure they do not burn.
3. Stir in the ras el hanout paste followed by the butternut squash, coating it in all the spices. Return the browned meat and all its juices to the tagine. Finely dice the coriander and add to the tagine.
4. Pour in the stock and stir all the ingredients together and bring to the boil. Once boiling, stir in the brown sugar and a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Place on the tagine lid, turn down the heat and allow to gently simmer for 2.5 hours, stirring occasionally.
5. After 2 hours when the meat is tender, scoop a cup of sauce from the tagine. Whisk in the cornflour to form a smooth paste and pour the mixture back into the tagine. Stir well and the sauce will start to thicken.
6. Add the dried apricots and return the lid and allow to simmer for a final 30 minutes.
7. When ready to serve, remove from the heat and sprinkle with the roughly chopped coriander. Serve alongside couscous. 

Cook’s Notes