Rhubarb And Lamb Tagine Recipes

CHICKEN TAGINE WITH RHUBARB

Steps:

• Season chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat and add olive oil. When oil is hot, brown chicken pieces, in batches, on both sides until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove to a sheet pan.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons fat from the Dutch oven and add onion. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan to deglaze, until onion begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Add carrot and leeks. Cook, stirring often, for 3 to 4 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about a minute. Season with salt; add turmeric and paprika and stir.
• Return chicken to Dutch oven and add chicken broth, cinnamon stick, sugar and salt to taste. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat, cover and simmer 35 minutes.
• Add olives, if using; cover and simmer another 15 to 20 minutes, or until chicken is fork tender. Stir in 1 to 2 tablespoons rhubarb syrup. Taste and adjust seasoning.
• Before serving, stir in parsley and poached rhubarb and heat through over low heat. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with rice or couscous.

RHUBARB AND LAMB TAGINE

Steps:

• A clay tagine which demands long, very slow cooking, will bring out the best of the flavors from the ingredients but a heavy bottomed pan or casserole will do fine. For this style of dish the meat is not browned first but the long cooking creates its own richness.
• Trim any very fatty bits off the lamb and put it into your tagine or pan. Trim and chop half the rhubarb and scatter it over the lamb. Chop the onion and add it to the meat. Pour over the water and add the ginger, cinnamon and salt and pepper. Set on a very low heat, as gentle as gas or electricity will go, and cook for 2 hours if using a metal pan, at least 3 hours and preferably 4 if using a clay tagine. The rhubarb and onion will dissolve into the sauce, which should be much reduced, and the meat should be soft enough to eat with a spoon.
• 15 minutes before serving chop the remaining rhubarb into small, even sized pieces and stir in to the tagine, allow it to soften but do not let it disintegrate. Check the sauce, and add salt if necessary.
• For authenticity serve a tagine with flat "pita-style" bread or couscous.

LAMB TAGINE

Steps:

• Place the lamb in a large nonreactive bowl and add the orange juice, vinegar and garlic. Toss to combine. Let the lamb marinate, covered, in the refrigerator for 2 hours, turning the pieces once or twice. Drain the lamb, reserving the marinade.
• Heat 2 T olive oil in a flameproof casserole over medium high heat. Add the lamb, in batches, and cook until browned, about 10 minutes per batch, adding more oil as needed.
• As the lamb is browned, remove the pieces to another bowl. Set the lamb aside. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the onion and carrots to the casserole. Adding more oil if necessary, cook the vegetables until softened, about 8 minutes. Then stir in the saffron, cumin, thyme, and coriander and cook over lowheat for 5 minutes to blend the flavors.
• Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and cook, stirring, for 1 minutes. Add the chickpeas, prunes, wine and reserved marinade. Season with salt and pepper.
• Return the lamb to the casserole and add the tomatoes and olives. Simmer, covered over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/4 hours. Stir int he lemon juice (this brightens the flavors.).
• Serve over couscous, garnished with fresh mint.