An easy way to make this warm and comforting Moroccan lamb stew!
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Don’t worry! There’s an easy way to make lamb tagine without a tagine pot. All you need is a dutch oven or stock pot. It all comes together in the pot in just five minutes. Then, the oven cooks the lamb until tender and falling off the bone. The stew will warm you from the inside out from the warm spice combination, and it’s sweetened slightly from the dried fruit. The yogurt sauce I make with my lamb tagine is so simple, and you can add more or less of each ingredient to make it your own. Your family will think you got a tagine pot!
Why your family will think you purchased a tagine pot
Melt in your mouth lamb
Rich, warm spice sauce
Hint of prune sweetness
Light, cool lemony mint yogurt sauce
Everything you need
- Olive oil -try the one in our shop straight from my family’s olive trees in Crete!
- Onion -finely chopped
- Garlic cloves -grated
- Lamb shanks -or your favorite lamb cuts
- Prunes -pitted and chopped; substitute dates or leave out if you prefer
- Diced or crushed tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- A pinch of saffron
Spice mix
- Salt
- Cracked black pepper
- Dried ground ginger
- Turmeric
- Ground cumin
- Ground coriander
- Ground cardamom
- Ground cinnamon
- Optional: crushed red pepper flakes
Yogurt Sauce
- Plain yogurt -substitute Greek yogurt with a bit of water
- Pinch of salt
- Cracked black pepper
- Juice of a lemon -as much as you like
- Mint leaves -finely chopped
How to make Lamb Tagine without a Tagine Pot
- Set the oven to the Broil setting.
- Place the lamb shanks in a metal baking pan and toss in 2 tablespoons of olive oil to coat.
- Combine all of the spices and season the lamb shanks on both sides.
- Take a pinch of saffron and add it to a bowl.
- Pour about a half cup of boiling hot water on top and set aside. This will be the saffron stock.
- Place the tray under the broiler and keep a close eye on the lamb shanks so that they do not burn.
- Broil until browned on both sides -about 10 minutes per side.
- In the meantime, place the onions in a Dutch oven with 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt.
- Cook over medium heat until soft, about 8 minutes, then add the garlic and warm until fragrant.
- Then, add the tomato paste and warm through.
- Place the lamb shanks in the pot and add the crushed tomatoes and saffron stock.
- Add 2 cups of water to the pan the lamb shanks roasted in to loosen any lamb drippings, then add it to the Dutch oven.
- Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.
- Cover with the lid.
- Reduce the oven’s temperature to 325 °F and place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven.
- Bake for 2 and 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender and falling off the bone.
- Whisk the yogurt sauce ingredients together in a bowl.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Optional pan-seared lamb
I like to save myself the hassle of oil splatter, cooking in batches, and all the time it takes to brown several batches of lamb. However, if you prefer to keep this a one-pot dish night, sear the lamb in your dutch oven. Do this in three or four batches for about four to five minutes per side until they’re nicely browned on all sides. Then continue with the rest of the recipe in the same pot.
Traditional Tagine topping
Traditionally, lamb tagine is topped with fried almonds. It’s an extra step that I typically don’t do. If you’d like to try it, heat some vegetable oil, peel the almonds, and fry them until crisp and golden brown. Remove them from the oil and dry them on a paper towel to remove the excess fat. Then, sprinkle them over the stew or put them in a bowl for individual serving. It adds a nice crunch to the tagine.
Serving
This is such a rich and delicious stew. So, serving it with something fresh and light really balances out the dinner, and that’s exactly what my yogurt sauce does. It’s so cool and refreshing. I like to make each plate by spooning the stew over couscous, cauliflower rice, or Mediterranean Rice Pilaf because they do an excellent job of soaking up all the delicious juices from the stew. Then, I drizzle the cool yogurt sauce on top. If you want to add some fresh veggies, you could add a side salad, and a good crusty bread would help you sop up any stew left on your plate. Kali Orexi!
More Stew Recipes:
Lamb Tagine without a Tagine Pot
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 5 garlic cloves, grated
- 5-6 lamb shanks
- 12 prunes, pitted and chopped
- 16 oz diced or crushed tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- A pinch of saffron
The Spices:
- salt, to taste
- cracked black pepper, to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon dried ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- optional: crushed red pepper flakes
The Yogurt Sauce:
- plain yogurt
- a pinch of salt
- cracked black pepper, to taste
- the juice of a lemon (2-3 tablespoons)
- a handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
Instructions
Set the oven to the Broil setting.
Place the lamb shanks in a metal baking pan and drizzle 2 tablespoons of olive oil on top. Toss to coat.
Combine all of the spices together and season the lamb shanks on both sides.
Take a pinch of saffron and add it to a bowl. Pour about a half cup of boiling hot water on top and set aside. This will be the saffron stock.
Place the tray under the broiler and keep a close eye on the lamb shanks so that they do not burn. Broil until browned on both sides. About 10 minutes per side.
In the meantime, place the onions in a Dutch oven with 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and a pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat until soft. About 8 minutes. Add the garlic and warm through until fragrant.
Add the tomato paste and warm through.
Place the lamb shanks inthe pot and add the crushed tomatoes and the safron stock.. Add 2 cups of water to the pan that the lamb shanks roasted in to loosen any lamb drippings. Add to the Dutch oven.
Bring to a boil and remove from the heat. Cover with the lid.
Reduce the oven's temperature to 325 °F and place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven.
Bake for 2 and 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender and falling off the bone.
Combine the yogurt ingredients together in a bowl and whisk together. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.
Serve with Mediterranean Rice Pilaf. Kali Orexi!
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