This is my recipe for Passover using lamb shoulder, Moroccan spices and sweet dried fruits which come together to form a rich, luscious stew. A large piece of lamb is simmered very gently for a few hours with onion, garlic, ginger, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric, prunes and apricots: a long cook that tastes like my childhood and is steeped in my family's Jewish Moroccan culture and love of food.
Ingredients:
1 lamb shoulder, 2.5kg, off the bone (keep the bones for flavour and snacking)
2 onions, finely chopped
8 pieces of garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 cinnamon stick
2 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp turmeric
A pinch of ground allspice
Salt, pepper
500ml chicken stock (you won’t use all of it)
1 cup (200g) pitted dried prunes
1 cup (175g) pitted dried apricots
Half a bottle of red (I used pinot noir)
1 bunch Dutch carrots
A handful of parsley, finely chopped and coriander sprigs to garnish
½ cup sliced toasted almonds to garnish
Method:
Cooler nights call for slow cooked meats that fall off the bone, coated in a rich sauce and maybe some indulgent buttery mash too. Our marbled short ribs are braised for 3 hours and are infused with with tomato, red wine, garlic and oregano. Serve with parpadelle, polenta or mash, the choice if yours.