Best Moroccan Lamb Shanks Recipes

LAMB SHANKS WITH CHICKPEAS & MOROCCAN SPICES

Steps:

• Soak the chickpeas overnight. Drain, tip into a saucepan and cover generously with fresh cold water. Bring to the boil, simmer for 45 minutes and drain.
• Heat the oil in a large casserole and brown the lamb all over. Remove and set aside. Pour off most of the fat, leaving 1 tablespoon in the dish, add the onions and fry for 8-10 minutes until soft.
• Preheat the oven to 160C/Gas 3/fan oven 140C. Mix together the ginger, garlic, chillies, cumin, coriander, pepper and paprika. Add half of this to the onions, tip in the tomatoes and cook for 2-3 minutes. Put in the lamb and chickpeas, cover generously with water (about 850ml/11⁄2 pints), bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Cover and cook in the oven for 11⁄2-2 hours until the chickpeas are really tender. (You can prepare up to this stage the day before. Cool, cover and refrigerate. Bring back to simmering point before starting step 4.)
• Remove from the oven and stir in the remaining spice mixture, the saffron and cinnamon, carrots, apricots, honey and salt. Cover and return to the oven for 45 minutes-1 hour until the lamb is tender and the vegetables cooked. Scatter the almonds and coriander on top.

SLOW COOKED MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large pan add lamb and cook until shanks are browned all over.
• Heat remaining olive oil in a large saucepan, add onion and garlic, cook until onion softens.
• Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne and ginger, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, water, stock granules, paste, honey and chutney, bring to the boil, add lamb shanks, reduce heat to low, cook, covered, for approx 41/2-5 hours, until lamb is falling off the bone, turn shanks several time during cooking.
• About 10 Min's before the end of cooking, add apricots, stir to combine.
• Remove shanks and cover with foil to keep warm.
• Mix a little water with the cornflour, add to liquid, bring to the boil, stir until sauce becomes a gravy consistency, it will not be super thick.
• I served ours over couscous and poured the sauce around the dish.

MOROCCAN HAROSETH-BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Add lamb shanks to marinade and toss to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Transfer to refrigerator and let marinate overnight.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
• Place carrots, onion, celery, fennel, garlic, and ginger in a roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Remove lamb from marinade and wipe off excess. Season with salt and pepper and add to roasting pan. Transfer to oven and roast, turning once, until well browned, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven and deglaze lamb and vegetables with wine and tomato paste.
• Decrease oven temperature to 325 degrees.
• Transfer lamb to a large Dutch-oven and add enough chicken stock to cover the lamb shanks halfway (you may not need to use all of the chicken stock). Add roasted vegetables, apricots, figs, dates, prunes, currants, almonds, walnuts, pistachios, crushed tomatoes, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and chile flakes. Place thyme, parsley, cilantro, and bay leaves in a piece of cheesecloth; tie with kitchen twine to enclose. Add to Dutch oven and cover.
• Bring lamb mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Immediately transfer to oven and cook until meat is tender and falling off the bone, about 3 hours.
• Remove from oven and let cool slightly. Remove lamb shanks and set aside. Remove vegetable mixture and cooking liquid from Dutch-oven and pass through a food mill back into Dutch-oven. Return lamb to Dutch-oven and toss to coat; serve.

MOROCCAN BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, add olive oil, onion, chile, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables begin to soften, 5 to 6 minutes. Add celery, carrot, cumin, coriander, oregano, cinnamon, star anise, and saffron. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until vegetables are soft and fragrant; season with salt and pepper.
• Add chicken stock, tomatoes, apricots, and olives; bring to a boil. Add lamb, making sure it is submerged halfway; season with salt and pepper. Transfer to oven and cook, rotating lamb every 30 minutes, until meat is evenly browned and falling off the bone, and sauce is thickened.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS WITH CHICKPEAS AND DATES

Steps:

• Soak chickpeas overnight covered in cold water by 2 inches. Drain.
• In a mortar, mash garlic, paprika, ginger, coriander, nutmeg, lemon juice, tomato paste, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, and a pinch of cloves with a pestle until a thick paste forms.
• Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season lamb with salt and pepper. Cook until golden on both sides, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Transfer lamb to a plate.
• Add onion and celery to pot, and cook until light gold, about 5 minutes. Stir in spice paste, and cook 2 minutes. Add chickpeas and water, reduce heat to medium-low, season with salt, and gently simmer for 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Add lamb and cinnamon stick to pot, and return to a simmer. Cover, transfer to oven, and cook until lamb is fork-tender, about 2 hours and 45 minutes. Add dates, and cook for 15 minutes. Skim fat from sauce, and discard. Serve with lemon wedges on the side.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS WITH DRIED FRUITS

Steps:

• Combine first 8 ingredients in large bowl and coat meat with this mixture; can be marinated several hours or overnight, or proceed immediately with cooking. Preheat oven to 350. Heat additional 2 tbsp olive oil in large Dutch oven or roasting pan over medium heat and brown the lamb shanks on all sides, two at a time (takes about 8 minutes per batch), and then remove to platter. Add onions and carrots to pot and cook over medium heat, stirring often, until onions are nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Add the wine, scraping up any browned bits, then add beef broth and lemon peel. Bring to simmer, put lamb shanks back in the pot in one layer, spooning the sauce & vegetables over them. Cover tightly and bake for 90 minutes, opening the oven a couple of times to turn the lamb and admire your progress. Add chopped ginger, dried fruits, lemon juice and honey and bake another 30 minutes. Remove meat and fruits to deep serving dish. Reduce sauce over high heat about 5 minutes until it turns a rich glossy brown. Pour sauce over lamb and serve, or cool and refrigerate overnight to be reheated next day.

MOROCCAN-STYLE BRAISED BABY LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C/gas 4.
• For the spice paste: Combine the saffron with the 2 teaspoons of boiling water, and leave to soak.
• Heat a small skillet over high heat, then dry-roast the fennel seeds, star anise, cardamom pods, cumin seeds, cinnamon and Sichuan peppercorns for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant. When the spices have cooled, remove the seeds from the cardamom pods, then place them with the dry-roasted seeds in an electric grinder, and grind until the mixture is finely ground. Set aside.
• In a suitable container, grind the chillies, garlic, ginger, cilantro stems and roots, turmeric and galangal with an electric stick-blender until you have a coarse paste. Lightly crush the peppercorns with a mortar and pestle or a heavy rolling pin, and add to the chilli/garlic mixture with the sea salt. Add the shallots, saffron strands with their soaking water, paprika, the reserved ground spices and the olive oil to this paste, and mix well to combine.
• Heat a heavy-based, medium-sized frying pan over high heat, then add the paste and cook, stirring regularly, for about 5 minutes or until fragrant. Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add the palm sugar and fish sauce, increase the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 2 minutes, or until mixture is slightly caramelised. Remove from stove and set aside.
• Brush a roasting tin with some olive oil and heat on the stove top. Season the lamb shanks with salt and white pepper, then add to the roasting pan and seal until lightly browned on all sides.
• Drain off any excess oil and increase the heat. Drizzle the prepared spice paste over lamb, and toss and stir the contents of the tin to ensure the shanks are well coated, and to seal in flavours. Add the tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, onions, dates, apricots and bay leaves, and stir to combine.
• Remove the tin from the stove, pour over stock and cover with foil. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 1 hour, or until lamb is very tender and well browned.
• When the meat is done, drizzle with lime juice and fish sauce before serving.
• Serve with cous cous, rice or crusty bread and a large green salad.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Heat some olive oil in a pan, cook lamb until browned all over, drain.
• In a large saucepan or casserole dish (depending on whether you want to cook on the stove or in the oven.)Add some more olive oil, cook onion and garlic until onion softens, add cinnamon, cumin and coriander, stir until fragrant.
• Add wine, bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered until liquid has reduced by about half (it doesn't have to be precise). Add chicken stock and honey, bring to the boil, and reduce heat again.
• Return lamb to the pan and either cook covered in a moderate slow oven (170c) for about 1hr 30 minutes or on a low heat on the stove for the same time. Uncover dish and add the kumara, cook covered again for a further 50Min's to 1 hr until lamb is falling of the bone.
• Remove lamb and kumara from dish cover with foil to keep warm. Strain liquid into another pan, mix a little water with the cornflour, bring the sauce to a boil over a high heat add cornflour and stir until mixture thickens.
• To Serve: I served mine over spiced couscous topped with kumara and lamb and then poured the sauce over.

MOROCCAN VEGETABLE COUSCOUS WITH LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• In a saucepan cover chickpeas with water and cook, covered, until tender.
• Drain, cool and remove skins.
• In bottom of a Couscoussier (or double stock pot w/steamer), preheat 5 tablespoons of butter and oil over medium heat until hot.
• Add lamb, salt, spices, onions, herb sprigs and tomatoes; cover and simmer, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes.
• Add 3 quarts water and chickpeas; cover and simmer over low heat, 1 1/2 hours.
• Cut meat into chunks, discarding bones.
• Add carrots, turnips and quince to lamb broth and simmer 30 minutes.
• In a separate saucepan cover squash with broth from lamb stew and simmer until tender.
• To lamb broth add zucchini, chili pepper, and raisins.
• Top with colander containing couscous, cover and steam 20 minutes.
• Dot couscous with remaining butter during last 5 minutes of steaming.
• To serve, spoon couscous onto serving dish and toss with Ghee*, Smen** or butter.
• Spread out to form a large well in center.
• With a slotted spoon transfer meat and vegetables into well.
• Add drained squash.
• Strain broth, adjust seasoning to taste and moisten couscous and vegetables with broth.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Splash some olive oil into a baking tray and add the shanks. Brown the shanks on a medium-high heat on top of the stove.
• Place the remaining ingredients in the baking tray and combine well with the lamb shanks. Cover with foil and place in a pre-heated oven for three hours at 160°C.
• Serve with couscous.

MOROCCAN-STYLE LAMB SHANKS WITH POTATOES AND PEAS

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a small heavy pot or skillet, and stir in the onion, garlic, ginger, and saffron; then lay in the lamb shanks. Cook for about 5 minutes over low heat, stirring frequently and turning the shanks over. Pour in enough water to cover, and sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon salt and several grindings of pepper. Cover, and continue to cook over low heat for 1 1/2-2 hours, until the shanks are very tender; check the level of liquid, and add more water if necessary so that it just covers the shanks. Add the potatoes, and simmer for 20 minutes; then add the peas, preserved lemon, and olives, and cook another 4 or 5 minutes. Fish out one of the shanks and the potatoes, and place on a warm plate; then, with a fine-mesh scoop, pick up all the peas and seasonings and scatter them over the meat. Pour on some of the cooking sauce (you'll only use about half of it), and sprinkle the parsley and cilantro on top.
• Variations
• I've used lima beans instead of peas, as well as a handful of fava beans, when I have them in the garden; both take a little longer to cook than the peas, so allow for that. If you don't have preserved lemon, either store-bought or homemade, use a couple of slivers of fresh lemon peel, finely julienned. And don't worry if you don't have fresh cilantro-parsley alone is fine. Be sure to save the rest of the cooking sauce.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 150 degrees.
• Heat the oil in a large heavy-based flameproof casserole with a lid over high heat. In 2 batches, cook the lamb, turning, for 8-10 minutes or until evenly browned, Transfer lamb t a plate and set aside,
• In remaining oil on medium-high heat add leek, onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes or until softened. Add harissa, cinnamon, star anise and orange zest, and cook, stirring, for 2-3 minutes or until fragrant. Add orange juice and white wine, and bring to the boil, Cook for 2-3 minutes or until wine mixture is reduced by half. Stir through apricots, dates, chick peas, tomatoes and stock, and bring to the boil, Return lamb to the casserole, then cover and transfer to oven. Cook for 3 hours 30 minutes or until meat begins to flake away from the bone.
• Increase oven temperature to 200 degrees and cook, uncovered, for 30-40 minutes or until the sauce has reduced and thickened.
• Meanwhile, using the heel of your hand, squash olives and discard pits.
• Scatter braised lamb with coriander leaves, crushed olives and smoked almonds to serve.

BRAISED MOROCCAN-STYLE BABY LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• First, make the paste. Combine saffron with 2 teaspoons of boiling water and set aside. Put fennel seeds, star anise, cardamom pods, cumin seeds, cinnamon and Sichuan peppercorns in a small frying pan and dry-roast over high heat for about 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Pound roasted spices with a pestle and mortar until cardamom is bruised. Discard cardamom husks and keep pounding until all the spices are finely ground. Set aside. Pound chillies, garlic, ginger, coriander, turmeric and galangal with the pestle and mortar until you have a coarse paste. Add salt and white peppercorns, and pound until peppercorns are lightly crushed. Add shallots, saffron water, paprika, reserved ground spices and oil, and mix well to combine. Put paste in a medium-sized frying pan and cook over high heat for about 5 minutes, or until fragrant. Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Add palm sugar and fish sauce. Increase heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for a further 2 minutes, or until mixture is slightly caramelised. Remove from stove and set aside. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Season lamb shanks with salt and pepper and seal in a hot, oiled roasting tin on the stove top until lightly browned on all sides. Drain off any excess oil and drizzle prepared paste over lamb, combining over high heat to coat well and seal in flavours. Add tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, onions, dates, apricots and bay leaves, and stir to combine. Remove tin from stove, pour over stock and cover with foil. Bake for 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for a further 1 hour, or until lamb is very tender and well browned. Remove lamb from oven and drizzle with lime juice and fish sauce before serving.

MOROCCAN BRAISED LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 detatch meat from bone 1 inch brown shanks in olive oil cook vegtables for 8 min add tomato paste cook 2 min add tomatos and cook 3 min add add marj, bay, peppercorns, anchovy & garlic and cook for 3 min Add white wine, vinigar and sugar and bring to boil add broth, water, corriander, paprika, cumin, cayenne and cinnamon boil Braise covered one hour continue braising three hours Strain liquid as sauce

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS WITH POLENTA AND WHITE BEANS

Steps:

• Cover beans with cold water in a large bowl and soak overnight, drain Coat the lamb in the flour; shake off excess.
• Heat the oil in a large saucepan; cook the lamb in batches until browned all over.
• Add onion and garlic; cook stirring until the onion is soft.
• Add spices to the pan; cook stirring about 2 minutes or until fragrant.
• Stir in the beans, rind, juice, undrained crushed tomatoes, stock and paste and bring to the boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer covered for 40 minutes.
• Uncover; simmer for about 50 minutes or until lamb and the beans are tender.
• Heat the water and milk in a large saucepan (do not boil).
• Add the polenta; cook stirring about 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and polenta softens.
• Serve the lamb mixture on polenta and sprinkled with combined extra rind, parsley and coriander.

MOROCCAN-STYLE LAMB SHANKS WITH APRICOTS

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add cumin seeds and cook until they release their aroma for about 1 minute. Stir in the onions, garlic, and sweet potatoes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally so potatoes don't stick.
• Put the lamb shanks in the pot and brown on all sides, about 8 minutes. Add tomatoes, apricots, and harissa. Season with salt and pepper. If mixture seems a bit dry, add a splash of water. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and cover. Simmer until meat is tender and falling off the bone, one hour or more, depending on the size of the shanks. Stir occasionally.
• Heat a small skillet over low heat and add the slivered almonds. Stir and cook until almonds are lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Place couscous in a large bowl and slowly pour in lukewarm water until just covered. Let sit until water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Toss couscous with 2 tablespoons olive oil and toasted almonds. Transfer to a serving dish. Spoon the lamb over the couscous and serve.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Oil Shanks, sprinkle with salt and pepper and rub generously with Ras el Hanout. Let them sit at room temp while you mince the carrots, onion, celery, ginger and garlic. In a large oven proof pot, heat some oil and brown the shanks on all sides, Remove to a plate. Add the chopped veg to the pot and stir, adding salt and pepper, until soft. Sprinkle spices over veg and stir, Add the wine and deglaze pot. Add broth, honey, tomato paste,sliced lemon and return shanks to pot, After it has reached a boil, reduce to simmer for 11/2hrs. or place in 300-325 oven for 11/2 hrs. Remove shanks,* reduce juices. Return Shanks to pot after juice had reduced, and add dried fruits and a few pieces of lemon and ginger and reheat for 30 minutes. *If there is time, pour juices into a glass bowl and place in the fridge for a couple of hours (or overnight), skim fat, and then return juice to pan and reduce. Serve with mashed potatoes or couscous.

MOROCCAN LAMB SHANKS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 170?C. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Add lamb shanks. Cook, turning, for 5 minutes or until browned. Transfer to an ovenproof dish.
• Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, garlic, spice mix and remaining oil to frying pan. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until soft. Add tomatoes and beef stock. Bring to the boil. Pour over lamb. Cover dish tightly.
• Place lamb in oven. Cook for 1 1/2 hours. Stir in chickpeas. Cover and return to oven. Cook for a further 25 minutes or until lamb is tender. Remove from oven. Stir through spinach. Season with salt and pepper.
• Serve with plain rice, fried rice, cous cous, mashed potatoes or similar. Top with lamb shanks. Spoon over sauce. Serve.
• Source: Super Food Ideas - September 2005 , Page 70 (Recipe by Kerrie Mullins, Photography by Louise Lister)