Preserved lemons
These easy preserved lemons pickled in brine and spices add an intense citrus flavour to Moroccan dishes - a larder essential
Tagine of lamb & merguez sausages
- Preparation and cooking time
- Cook:
- Prep 35 mins plus marinating
- More effort
- Serves 8
Skip to ingredients
For the chermoula marinade
- 1 tbsp each ground cumin, paprika and turmeric
- 1 tsp hot chilli powder
- 2 large red onionsroughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves
- thumb-sized piece gingerroughly chopped
- 200ml/ 7fl oz olive oil
- 200ml/ 7fl oz lemon juice(about 4 lemons)
- 1 tbsp honey
- large handful flat-leaf parsleyroughly chopped
- large handful corianderroughly chopped
For the tagine
- 6 lambshanks or a 1kg/2lb 4oz piece lamb or mutton shoulder (if using shoulder ask the butcher to cut it into 10cm chunks on the bone)
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 2 carrotssliced
- 2 red onionssliced
- 12 dried prunes
- 1 tbsp honey
- juice ½ lemon
- 8 merguez sausages(optional)
- 2 preserved lemonshomemade (see recipe below) or bought, pulp scooped out, rinsed and finely sliced
- 2 mintsprigs, to serve
- harissato serve (see recipe below)
Nutrition: per serving
- kcal852
- fat65g
- saturates19g
- carbs21g
- sugars15g
- fibre4g
- protein45g
- salt1.4glow
Method
step 1
For the marinade, roast the spices in a dry pan for a couple mins until fragrant. Put remaining marinade ingredients in a blender and process to a smooth paste, then add the roast spices and blend again to combine. Place the lamb in a large bowl and pour over the marinade. Leave in the paste overnight, or for at least 2 hrs to absorb all the flavours.
step 2
Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. In a large roasting tin, big enough to fit the meat in one single layer, heat the oil and place over a high heat on the hob. Remove the meat from the marinade, wiping off and reserving any excess, then brown shanks on all sides in the hot oil.
step 3
Add remaining marinade to the dish along with the carrots, onions and prunes, then pour in 1 litre water. Cover the dish tightly with foil and cook in a low oven for 3½-4 hrs until the meat is tender and falling away from the bone. Add the honey, lemon juice and seasoning and keep warm.
step 4
If using, fry the sausages until cooked through, then add to the tagine. Serve the meat in a large bowl with the sauce spooned over, then scatter with the preserved lemons and mint, and serve the harissa on the side.
