In a moment of inspiration today, I decided to cook up a lamb stew. Despite being pretty much off-the-cuff, it turned out outrageously well (if I do say so myself — and my wife agrees) — so here it goes:
Lamb Stew
Place all of the above in a large bowl, and marinate for 1-2 hours, stirring periodically. While you’re waiting, prepare & cook the vegetables:
- leg of lamb, trimmed, boned & cubed
- 1 cup red wine
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp garlic oil
- 4-5 cloves of garlic, crushed
- ground pepper
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 4 Medjool dates, pitted
Saute the vegetables in a Dutch oven about 15 minutes until the onions soften. Remove from the pan.
- 2 onions, sliced
- 3 carrots, sliced
- 3-4 tbsp olive oil
Drain the marinade, and brown the lamb in the Dutch oven. Remove from the pan.
Saute the tomatoes until dissolved. Add the marinade. Add the following spices:
- 6 Roma tomatoes, pealed & coarsely chopped
- Ground pepper
Add the meat, onions and carrots to the pan with the tomato saute, and add the dates and the stock. Stir well, cover, and cook over low heat for about 1 hour.
- 1 tbsp cumin
- 1 tbsp coriander
- 1 tbsp paprika
- 1/2 tbsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tbsp allspice
- 1/2 tbsp nutmeg
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
6 Medjool dates- 1 cup chicken stock.
Remove the meat and vegetables from the pan, leaving the gravy. Turn up the heat and uncover to cook the liquid down a bit.
Thicken with a flour-butter roux (about 1-2 tbsp butter/flour) Garnish with slices of roasted red bell peppers, and serve with curry couscous and fresh steamed green beans with lemon butter.
Seriously yummy comfort food for a winter’s eve.
Give it a go — it’s an easy meal (total prep & cook time about 3 hours), and well worth it.
