Lamb, Chickpea and Squash Tagine with Chermoula

The days are getting shorter and the nights a bit colder ... so time for a comforting tagine! I don't know why but we're really not that much into chicken right now so it's lamb once again, perhaps I'll do a chicken one next time for a change.

I wanted to try a new recipe and I found this one on the delicious.magazine site that sounded good, particularly so as I had a started jar of chickpeas and also some butternut squash to use up. In the freezer was a de-boned half leg of lamb weighing 650gm and so I made it with that adjusting the recipe slightly. We like it spicy so I made the full amount of chermoula:)

Don't let the long list of ingredients put you off making this. You can make the chermoula a bit in advance and then the rest is really easy. It's only a stew by another name when all is said and done and as with any stew long and slow cooking is the key. Meaning once it's simmering away you can get on and do something else. Also I usually make something like this early in the day and then let it sit for a few hours before slowly re-heating, the flavours meld and get deeper I find.

This was just fabulous! As I had a quince that needed to be used I added it to the tagine as well but a bit before the squash as it takes longer to cook. Quince figures in Arabic and Moroccan cuisine so it was not out of place. With all that long and slow cooking the lamb was melt-in-your-mouth tender, and the flavour incredibly deep and satisfying. For me this is definitely a keeper recipe, and I feel making the tagine with a chermoula gives it another dimension to the usual marinading of the meat in the spices.

Lamb, Chickpea and Squash Tagine with Chermoula - Serves 4-6

3 Tbsp olive oil
1kg lean diced lamb shoulder
2 onions, halved and thinly sliced
6 plum tomatoes, peeled and roughly chopped (I de-seeded them too)
7.5cm piece cinnamon stick
1 tspn ground ginger
2 Tbsp clear honey
1 small preserved lemon, finely chopped, or 2 pared strips fresh lemon zest
750ml hot lamb or chicken stock
450g peeled and de-seeded squash, cut into small chunks
400g can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

For the chermoula:
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 tspn ground cumin
2 tspn ground coriander
1 1/2 tspn paprika
2 tspn harissa paste or 1 tspn minced red chilli (sambal oelek)
Good pinch saffron strands
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Small handful fresh coriander leaves, plus extra chopped coriander to garnish
Small handful fresh mint leaves
4 Tbsp olive oil

1. Make the chermoula by putting all the ingredients into a food processor with some seasoning. Blend to a smooth paste, then set aside.

2. Heat the oil in a large, flame-proof casserole. Fry the lamb in 2 batches until lightly browned all over, then lift onto a plate. Add the onions to the pan and fry over a medium heat until soft and nicely browned. Add the tomatoes, cinnamon, ginger, honey and 2 tablespoons of the chermoula, and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Return the lamb to the casserole and add the preserved lemon or strips of lemon zest and the hot stock, and season well to taste. Partially cover the tagine and leave to simmer gently for 1 hour.

3. Gently stir in the squash and chickpeas and simmer, uncovered, for another 15-20 minutes until the squash is tender and the sauce has reduced a little more.

4. When the lamb and squash are tender, stir in the remaining chermoula and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Serve the lamb tagine with buttered couscous, garnished with the extra chopped coriander.

Cook's note: The recipe says to make the chermoula in a food processor, if you haven't got one don't worry, you can do it the authentic way in a pestle and mortar.