Lamb Tagine a la Slow Cooker with Cous Cous

I have been neglecting the joy of the winter slow cooker meal. What's not to like about the added time, subtracted effort model of family meal cooking? So out of the back of the cupboard it comes. Today, sick child and class work to set, was a classic case of more time less effort. I just love Moroccan food, and using the slow cooker allows me to make a tagine with all the effortless ease of the slow cooker meal.

Lamb Tagine a la Slow Cooker

Cooking time 3 hours in the slow cooker. Serves 4.

200g lamb - shoulder is better
1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon salt
1 onion
2 cloves of garlic
a preserved lemon - if you don't have one use fresh lemon rind and juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
a collection of vegetables from the fridge - I used half a leek, a small kumara, a handful of yams, a carrot, a stick of celery

Trim and slice the lamb. Place the lamb, salt and spices into the slow cooker and mix until coated. 

Slice up the vegetables into roughly even sized pieces. This is a rustic dish, so don't get too worried about how neat they are. Add the vegetables into the slow cooker and stir around to combine with the spices. 

Throw in the garlic, lemon peel and juice. If you have preserved lemon, don't add it until later in the cooking process.

Add the olive oil and enough boiling water to just cover the lamb and vegetables. Turn the slow cooker up to high, put the lid on walk away for 2 hours. 

Now add the olives and preserved lemon and leave for another hour. Check the seasoning and add more salt if required.




Cous Cous with Raisins

1 onion - finely sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons raisins
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
1 cup instant cous cous
2 tablespoons butter

In a small pot with a tight fitting lid, fry the onion in the oil until soft. Add the raisins, followed by the salt and boiling water. 

Bring back to the boil then take from the heat and add the cous cous. Stir and leave with the lid on for 4 to 5 minutes. 

The water should be completely absorbed. 

Add the butter and stir over the heat with a fork until the butter is melted and the cous cous fluffy.

Serve the tagine over the cous cous in bowls. Spoon the liquid over so it soaks into the cous cous.

Dinner done!