If you think lamb is too expensive, this is the recipe for you. Whereas a leg of lamb will usually cost you ~$30-$40, a deboned lamb shoulder costs maybe $15, and cheaper still is the lamb neck. Yes, there’s more fat, and a lot of it is bones, but they’re easy to pick out, add a ton of flavour to a dish, and the meat basically falls right off them because it’s so tender.
It works especially well in this dish because (this is the trick) after you stir the cooking juices that release from the lamb into the potatoes, the starch from the root vegetable makes the whole tajine creamy. In this case, tajine just refers to the Moroccan-style spicing and slow-cooking, rather than the cooking vessel. Cinnamon and dreamy lamb…heaven on a rainy day.
You can also do this in the oven in a tightly sealed casserole dish (or an actual tajine) and it will cook much faster. But to me, the magic is in coming home to an amazing meal. Stir it when you walk in and then get a salad or appetizer ready while it cooks for another hour.
Slow-Cooker Lamb Neck Tagine with Chickpeas and Cinnamon
1 tsp oil
4 lamb necks
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
6 potatoes
3 carrots
3 cups cooked chickpeas
1 tsp ground cinnamon + 1 cinnamon stick (or 1 tbsp ground cinnamon)
1 star anise (or 4-6 points)
1 fresh red chili pepper, seeds and membrane removed (or 1/2 tsp ground)
4 cups beef, lamb or chicken broth
Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Sprinkle the salt on both sides of the lamb shoulders and add meat to the hot skillet. Cook on each side for 2-3 minutes, or until seared but not blackened. Remove to slow-cooker. Add cumin seeds to skillet. Stir for 30 seconds then add potatoes and carrots and stir for 3 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Transfer to the slow-cooker. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 5-6 hours. 1 or 2 hours before it’s done, stir the ingredients to make the sauce creamy.
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