lamb tagine with almonds and prunes

There was a time when cooking a tagine was a regular thing for me, and it's high time it made a comeback. North African food is unique due to its geographic location and cultural history; the cuisine is like a merging of Middle Eastern, African and French flavour profiles. 

A prominent feature of Moroccan food is the combination of protein and fruit, and often nuts - think classic dishes like chicken with preserved lemon, or couscous with a smattering of dried fruit and toasted almonds tumbled through it. Moroccan dishes often also feature honey.

Lamb, Prune and Almond Tagine hits all of those beautiful flavour notes. Often made with apricots, I love the prune version because of the subtle sweetness and delicious stickiness they develop as it cooks.

Speaking of pots…

Tagine the Food vs Tagine the Cooking Vessel
When a dish is named after the vessel it's cooked in, things can sound a little confusing.

A Tagine - the cooking vessel - is a clay cooking pot with a funnelled lid. Tagine - the food - is a combination of meat, vegetables and spices cooked in this pot.

I don't use a tagine pot, which is not the cultural crime it may seem! Most restaurants and many homes in Morocco these days use regular pots instead, as traditional tagines are designed for cooking over a fire.

The signature spice blend of Morocco is ras-el-hanout. A true essential in cooking food from this region, in Arabic it literally means ‘head of the shop’. Its true translation ‘top shelf’; think of it as the cornerstone of the Moroccan flavour profile.

You can buy ready-made ras-el-hanout in supermarkets, but chances are you already have most of the spices in your pantry. If you're missing one or two spices, it's not a big deal - the recipe changes from region to region.

What to serve with tagine:
Flatbread, tomato and cucumber salad, green salad, saffron rice all pair nicely with tagine. Interestingly, tagine is not traditionally served with couscous but it works well with it so go ahead!

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