Rich Moroccan Lamb Potjie

Total Time: 4 hours

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 3 hours

Servings: 4 - 6 people

Suitable For: Family holidays and special occasions

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If you enjoyed our traditional South African Lamb Potjie recipe, then you’ll love this rich Moroccan Lamb recipe, which injects plenty of aromatic herbs and spice to the popular dish. Served with zesty couscous, flatbread and a minty yoghurt dressing, it’s one of those sensory meals that’ll leave your home scented with the allure of foreign lands.

Ingredients

FOR LAMB TAGINE

2 kg lamb neck, chopped
2 tablespoons oil
3 onions, sliced
1 tablespoon ginger, crushed
1 clove of garlic
1 cinnamon stick
2 teaspoons cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
Lemon zest
1 cube lamb stock, dissolved in
300ml boiling water
1 can of chopped tomatoes
375ml tomato puree
1 can coconut milk
1 tablespoon honey
Salt and black pepper for seasoning
1 tub Nomu Moroccan spice rub

As an alternative to the Nomu rub, mix the following:

2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons coriander
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons parsley
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon chilli powder
2 teaspoons turmeric

FOR COUSCOUS

1 cup couscous
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon thyme, chopped
Lemon zest
1 cube of chicken broth dissolved in
400 ml boiling water
1 round feta

FOR YOGHURT DRESSING

1 cup greek yoghurt
Lemon zest
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons mint leaves, chopped

FOR FLATBREAD

1 cup self-raising flour
1/4 cup plain yoghurt
Parsley, chopped
Salted butter

Instructions

Place the lamb in a large bowl or sealable bag and rub with the Moroccan spice rub. Allow to rest for at least 1 hour (even better if overnight).
Place your cast iron pot over prepared coals and heat oil.
Brown the lamb in batches. Remove and set aside.
Place onion in the pot and saute for 2-3 minutes.
Add ginger, garlic, cinnamon stick, cayenne pepper, fennel seeds and lemon zest. Saute again for 2-3 minutes.
Add the lamb back into the pot and stir.
Add dissolved lamb stock cube to the pot and allow to simmer for a few minutes while you scrape the bottom of the pot, loosening the brown bits.
Add chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, coconut milk, and honey to the lamb and stir thoroughly.
Season to taste with salt and black pepper.
Cover with lid and simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally.
To thicken the sauce, remove the lid after 2 hours and allow to simmer over a reduced heat.
Serve with couscous, flatbread, and yoghurt dressing

COUSCOUS

Mix dry couscous, parsley, thyme and lemon zest in a bowl.
Add dissolved chicken stock cubes to the couscous mixture (ensure that you just cover the couscous with the water).
Cover with a lid and let the mixture sit for 4-5 minutes until couscous is tender and all the liquid has been absorbed.
Fluff couscous with a fork and season to taste. Serve with crumbled feta.

YOGHURT DRESSING

Mix Greek yoghurt with lemon zest, lemon juice and mint. Serve with the lamb.

FLATBREAD

Mix self-raising flour, plain yoghurt, and parsley to form a dough (the consistency of the dough should be firm and easy to roll out; add more yoghurt/flour if needed).
Divide dough into 8 equal pieces.
Roll each piece out individually on a surface dusted with flour.
Heat butter in a pan and add 1 piece of rolled-out dough to the pan.
Wait until small bubbles have formed in the dough before flipping over.
Remove from heat and immediately cover with salted butter.
Repeat steps 4-6 for each piece of flatbread.