Moroccan Style Lamb Shanks With Apricots Recipes

Steps:

• Season lamb shanks generously with salt and pepper. Place in a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot. Cover with 6 cups water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a low simmer and cook, covered with lid ajar, for 1 hour. Remove shanks and reserve cooking liquid. Wipe out the pan. (You may cook the lamb shanks in advance, even a day ahead.)
• Set Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add 1 teaspoon garlic, bay leaf, saffron, tomato paste and paprika. Stir together and let sizzle for 1 minute, then add reserved lamb broth and bring to a boil. Add lamb shanks and apricots, cover with lid ajar and simmer for 1 1/2 hours, until meat is very tender, nearly falling off the bone.
• Remove shanks and place on a cutting board to cool. Add parsnips to simmering broth, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Taste broth and adjust seasoning. If necessary, reduce over medium-high heat to concentrate cooking juices.
• When shanks are cool enough to handle, remove the bones (use your hands). Cut the meat into large chunks and return to the pot to warm through. Transfer meat and sauce to a serving platter.
• To finish, warm remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add remaining 1/2 teaspoon garlic and let sizzle without browning, about 30 seconds. Add chickpeas and warm them through, about 5 minutes. Season lightly with salt, and toss with the chopped cilantro. Spoon chickpeas over lamb and sauce.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/gas 4.
• For the spice paste: Combine the saffron with the 2 teaspoons of boiling water, and leave to soak.
• Heat a small skillet over high heat, then dry-roast the fennel seeds, star anise, cardamom pods, cumin seeds, cinnamon and Sichuan peppercorns for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant. When the spices have cooled, remove the seeds from the cardamom pods, then place them with the dry-roasted seeds in an electric grinder, and grind until the mixture is finely ground. Set aside.
• In a suitable container, grind the chillies, garlic, ginger, cilantro stems and roots, turmeric and galangal with an electric stick-blender until you have a coarse paste. Lightly crush the peppercorns with a mortar and pestle or a heavy rolling pin, and add to the chilli/garlic mixture with the sea salt. Add the shallots, saffron strands with their soaking water, paprika, the reserved ground spices and the olive oil to this paste, and mix well to combine.
• Heat a heavy-based, medium-sized frying pan over high heat, then add the paste and cook, stirring regularly, for about 5 minutes or until fragrant. Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add the palm sugar and fish sauce, increase the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 2 minutes, or until mixture is slightly caramelised. Remove from stove and set aside.
• Brush a roasting tin with some olive oil and heat on the stove top. Season the lamb shanks with salt and white pepper, then add to the roasting pan and seal until lightly browned on all sides.
• Drain off any excess oil and increase the heat. Drizzle the prepared spice paste over lamb, and toss and stir the contents of the tin to ensure the shanks are well coated, and to seal in flavours. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, onions, dates, apricots and bay leaves, and stir to combine.
• Remove the tin from the stove, pour over stock and cover with foil. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 1 hour, or until lamb is very tender and well browned.
• When the meat is done, drizzle with lime juice and fish sauce before serving.
• Serve with cous cous, rice or crusty bread and a large green salad.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil, onion, chile, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add celery, carrot, cumin, coriander, oregano, cinnamon, star anise, and saffron. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until vegetables are soft and fragrant; season with salt and pepper.
• Add chicken stock, tomatoes, apricots, and olives; bring to a boil. Add lamb, making sure it is submerged halfway; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to oven and cook, rotating lamb every 30 minutes, until meat is evenly browned and falling off the bone, and sauce is thickened.

Steps:

• Soak chickpeas overnight covered in cold water by 2 inches. Drain.
• In a mortar, mash garlic, paprika, ginger, coriander, nutmeg, lemon juice, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and a pinch of cloves with a pestle until a thick paste forms.
• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season lamb with salt and pepper. Cook until golden on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer lamb to a plate.
• Add onion and celery to pot, and cook until light gold, about 5 minutes. Stir in spice paste, and cook 2 minutes. Add chickpeas and water, reduce heat to medium-low, season with salt, and gently simmer for 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Add lamb and cinnamon stick to pot, and return to a simmer. Cover, transfer to oven, and cook until lamb is fork-tender, about 2 hours and 45 minutes. Add dates, and cook for 15 minutes. Skim fat from sauce, and discard. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan add lamb and cook until shanks are browned all over.
• Heat remaining olive oil in a large saucepan, add onion and garlic, cook until onion softens.
• Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and ginger, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, water, stock granules, paste, honey and chutney, bring to the boil, add lamb shanks, reduce heat to low, cook, covered, for approx 41/2-5 hours, until lamb is falling off the bone, turn shanks several time during cooking.
• About 10 Min's before the end of cooking, add apricots, stir to combine.
• Remove shanks and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Mix a little water with the cornflour, add to liquid, bring to the boil, stir until sauce becomes a gravy consistency, it will not be super thick.
• I served ours over couscous and poured the sauce around the dish.

Steps:

• Soak the chickpeas overnight. Drain, tip into a saucepan and cover generously with fresh cold water. Bring to the boil, simmer for 45 minutes and drain.
• Heat the oil in a large casserole and brown the lamb all over. Remove and set aside. Pour off most of the fat, leaving 1 tablespoon in the dish, add the onions and fry for 8-10 minutes until soft.
• Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 3/fan oven 140C. Mix together the ginger, garlic, chillies, cumin, coriander, pepper and paprika. Add half of this to the onions, tip in the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. Put in the lamb and chickpeas, cover generously with water (about 850ml/11⁄2 pints), bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Cover and cook in the oven for 11⁄2-2 hours until the chickpeas are really tender. (You can prepare up to this stage the day before. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Bring back to simmering point before starting step 4.)
• Remove from the oven and stir in the remaining spice mixture, the saffron and cinnamon, carrots, apricots, honey and salt. Cover and return to the oven for 45 minutes-1 hour until the lamb is tender and the vegetables cooked. Scatter the almonds and coriander on top.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
• Heat the oil in a large heavy-based flameproof casserole with a lid over high heat. In 2 batches, cook the lamb, turning, for 8-10 minutes or until evenly browned, Transfer lamb t a plate and set aside,
• In remaining oil on medium-high heat add leek, onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add harissa, cinnamon, star anise and orange zest, and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant. Add orange juice and white wine, and bring to the boil, Cook for 2-3 minutes or until wine mixture is reduced by half. Stir through apricots, dates, chick peas, tomatoes and stock, and bring to the boil, Return lamb to the casserole, then cover and transfer to oven. Cook for 3 hours 30 minutes or until meat begins to flake away from the bone.
• Increase oven temperature to 200 degrees and cook, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened.
• Meanwhile, using the heel of your hand, squash olives and discard pits.
• Scatter braised lamb with coriander leaves, crushed olives and smoked almonds to serve.

Steps:

• Combine the cinnamon stick, nutmeg, clove, ginger, peppercorns, cumin, cardamom, coriander and fennel in a spice grinder and grind until fine and well mixed. Measure out 3 tablespoons and reserve the rest for another use.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large roasting pan over medium-high heat. Season the shanks with the salt, place in the pan and sear on all sides, about 15 minutes. Remove and set aside the shanks. Turn the heat to low. Add 1 tablespoon of oil, the garlic and onions. Cook until browned, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Pour in the chicken broth, raise the heat and deglaze the pan. Stir in the spice mixture and the apricots. Put the shanks back in the pan.
• Cover with foil and roast until the meat is very soft, turning the shanks frequently and spooning the liquid over them, about 2 1/2 hours. Take out the shanks and degrease the sauce. Stir in the thyme and salt and pepper to taste.
• Divide the shanks among 4 plates and spoon the sauce over them. Serve with couscous or potatoes.