Baked Lamb Tagine with Quinces, Figs and Honey

 

                In this festive dish, a shoulder of lamb is marinated in chermoula, a delicious Morrocan herb and spice mix, and baked slowly. If you have difficulty sourcing quinces, you can use sharp green apples or pears instead.

Serves 4-6

• 1.5 kg shoulder of lamb on the bone
• 30 ml olive oil plus 15 ml butter
• 2 red onions, cut into wedges
• 225 gr ready-to-eat pitted prunes
• 225 gr dried figs or fresh figs, halved
• 40 gr butter
• 2 fresh quinces, quatered
• 45 ml orange flower water
• 30 ml honey
• Leaves from a small bunch of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
• Leaves from a small bunch of fresh cilantro, chopped
• Plain, buttery couscous "click for recipe" or roasted potatoes, to serve
• Chermoula "click for recipe"

1. Cut small incisions in the shoulder of the lamb wit a sharp knife and rub the chermoula well into the meat.
2. Cover and leave in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, or overnight.
3. Preheat the oven to 350F "180C".
4. Heat the olive oil in a tagine or heavy-based casserole dish, add the lamb and brown it all over and transfer the meat to a plate.
5. Stir the onions and any leftover chermoula into the olive oil, add the prunes and if using dried figs, add them at this stage.
6. Pour in 300 ml water and put the lamb back into the tagine, cover and bake in the oven for 2 hours.
7. Towards the end of the cooking time, melt the butter in a heavy-based pan, toss in the quinces and sauté until golden brown.
8. Remove the tagine rom the oven and place the golden quinces around the meat "if using fresh figs, add them at this stage".
9. Add the orange flower water and honey, then return the tagine to the oven for a further 25-30 minutes, until the lamb is so tender it almost falls off the bone.
10. Sprinkle the chopped parsley and cilantro over the top and serve immediately with plain, buttery couscous or roasted potatoes.

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