This is pretty easy and so so tasty.
- half a leg of lamb or 800g lean diced lamb
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
- 400g tin of chickpeas
- cinnamon stick
- small packet of ready-to-eat apricots roughly chopped
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 2 cloves of garlic roughly chopped
- salt & pepper
- water
- couscous – enough to feed your hoard
- vegetable stock cube or melt
Put the oven on to 190° C. If you have half a leg of lamb (rather than diced lamb), chop it into very large pieces – about 6 chunks maybe. I left the bone in for extra flavour. Remove as much of the fat as you can as you cut it – use a sharp knife or a pair of kitchen scissors if you like. I know fat adds flavour, but lamb is so fatty you can afford to remove a lot. Rub the ground spices (add more cumin and coriander if you like, but go easy with the paprika), salt & pepper into the meat and fry in a little olive oil in the casserole. When it starts to brown, add the garlic, apricots, tomatoes, cinnamon stick, drained rinsed chickpeas and enough water to cover the meat. Bring to the boil, cover, then put in the oven for about an hour.
Make the couscous up to the packet instructions – I like to add a veg stock melt or cube to the mix. Spread a layer of couscous over the casserole and bake or grill with the lid off for a further 10 minutes or so. Serve with some freshly-steamed green beans and crusty bread to mop up the juice.