Lamb Stew
Inspired by the flavors of North Africa but with a few twists, this spicy (but not too hot) and naturally sweet lamb stew will warm you on a cold winter night. Its brown and orange color palette won’t win any beauty contests, but don’t let that fool you.
(And if lamb’s not your thing, you could easily make a vegetarian version by replacing the lamb with some combination of chickpeas, eggplant, and root vegetables and switching the beef and chicken stocks with veggie stock.)
Lamb Stew
Active Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 5-6 hours
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
3-4 lbs. bone-in lamb stew or shanks
2 lbs. butternut squash, roughly chopped
1 lb. baby carrots, cut in half
1 medium onion, chopped
4 red bell peppers, cut in half, seeds and ribs removed.
1 head of garlic, cut in half, crosswise
1-3 fresno chiles, cut in half, seeds and ribs removed (feel free to substitute your hot pepper of choice, preferably something fruity)
1 cup beef stock
1 cup chicken stock
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 bay leaves
Salt to taste
Spice Mix:
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp clove
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp allspice
OR:
1 Tbsp Ras el Hanout
1/2 tsp black pepper
1. Preheat your oven to 450F. Prepare your red peppers, garlic, and chiles. Line a baking sheet with tin foil. Add a few drops of vegetable oil and rub the oil with a paper towel to coat the foil. Place the peppers, garlic and chiles cut side down. Roast for 30-40 minutes, until the red peppers are well charred. If you are using smaller chiles, you probably want to remove them early, after about 20 minutes.
2. While the peppers are roasting, you can cut the onions and carrots and prepare the spice mix. I like making my own spice mix, but if you find it easier, you might be able to find ras el hanout, a traditional North African spice blend. (For instance I found this one at my local Star Market.)
3. Once the peppers come out of the oven, leave them to cool. Once you can handle them, peel the peppers, garlic, and chiles. (There’s a lot of advice out there about how to peel roasted peppers, but as long as they are properly charred, it should be fine, as long as they have cooled enough to handle.) Place the roasted peppers, garlic, and chiles in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth.
4. Put a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil in a 5 qt. saute pan (or dutch oven or similar pot with a lid) over medium to medium-high heat. Once the pan is up to temperature, add the lamb (in batches if necessary to not overcrowd the pan) and brown about 4-5 minutes per side. Remove the browned lamb from the pan and place it in a bowl or plate and cover with tin foil. (If you’re daring. you can start this step as the peppers come out of the oven to speed things up a little and you don’t mind juggling a few things at once.)
5. Lower the heat to medium-low and add the carrots and onions with a large pinch of salt to the pan. Saute for about 8 minutes until the onions begin to become translucent.
6. Add the blended red peppers, the stock, the spice mix, and the bay leaves. Stir to combine. Add the lamb back to the pan and cover. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the lamb is tender, stirring occasionally, about 3 hours.
7. When the lamb is almost done, cut up the butternut squash. Once the lamb is tender, remove it to a clean bowl or plate and cover in tin foil. (This is a good time to skim extra fat from the top of the stew if there’s more than you would like.) Add the squash to the pan and cook until tender, about 10-15 minutes. (If the stew is thinner than you’d like, leave the lid off the pan to boil away a bit more of the liquid.) While the squash is cooking, shred the lamb into bite size pieces with a fork. Once the squash is done, add the lamb back to the stew and stir. Taste and adjust for salt. Cover the pan and turn the burner off. Let the stew rest for at least 5 minutes. Then serve!
