Lamb Tagine with Almond Rice Pilaf

For my birthday I recieved a new toy- a Scanpan Tagine. I have wanted one of these for years.

There is so much you can do with one- curries, tagines, slow cooking... perfect for Moroccan, Maltese and Indian dishes. So of course, within a week I had to give my new toy a whirl. Because I wanted to allow my dish to slow cook over 4 hours, I made it the evening before. Apart from the cooking time, this was relatively easy. The tagine does a lot of the work itself!

I used this recipe below:

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/6636/lamb+tagine

Yummy!!!

I didn't have time to marinate my lamb overnight, only half an hour, but the taste was still amazing. My whole house filled up with the beautiful vapour of this rich, flavoursome dish.



Before the slow cooking begins (before liquid is added)

Finished product

I took the tagine lid off for about half an hour during the cooking time as I felt that I had added too much liquid and wanted some of it to evaporate. This seemed to work fine as the finished product was rich and saucy. I was a bit unsure about the addition of the butter at the end of the cooking time, but after tasting before and after, I can see why it is added. It takes away some of the bite of the spices and makes the texture of the sauce that little bit creamier and glossier.

Almond Rice Pilaf
This is an interesting and easy alternative to steamed rice. This makes enough for two serves.

3/4 a cup of basmati rice
2 cups of chicken stock
Teaspoon saffron powder
Large pinch of chopped coriander
1/4 cup of slivered almonds
Squeeze of lemon juice

In a microwavable rice cooker, combine rice, stock and saffron. Stir to combine. Microwave on high for about 12 minutes or until water has evaporated. Stir through coriander and almonds and add squeeze of lemon juice. Serve with tagine (or any other Moroccan dish!)

The boyfriend commented that this was up there with one of the best dishes I have ever made. The flavours brought me back to Maha... thats right, a dish I made reminded me of one of my favourite restaurants. Wow! But I cannot take all the credit... I have a feeling me and my tagine are going to be very good friends :)

L x