Minced Lamb With Chickpeas

There are times when my tastebuds crave the sweet spicy taste of a Moroccan tagine. This week I had one such day but it being a Wednesday I was busy with teaching the grandkids and Paul decided to go off to the allotment since it was a nice, dry, sunny day. This meant I had precious little time for faffing around with complicated recipes and fancy ingredients. I did find one recipe which looked easy enough and if there’s one thing I like, it’s a quick and simple recipe. As luck would have it we had a pack of lamb mince in the fridge since I was going to make a moussaka this week. The rest of the ingredients; with the exception of the dried apricots which I substituted with raisins; were all at hand, so minced lamb with chickpeas it was. 

The recipe was simple and with only a few steps to follow dinner was ready in record time. 
The tagine was served with buttery couscous and went down a treat.

• 450g lean lamb mince
• 1 onion, peeled and chopped
• 4 teaspoons plain flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 200ml stock (I used chicken Oxo)
• 1 tablespoons runny honey
• A handful of raisins
• 1 x 400g can chick peas, drained,

1. Heat a large pan and dry fry the lamb with the onion for 3-4 minutes. Break up any lumps with the back of a spoon.
2. Add the flour and cook for 1-2 minutes.
3. Add the spices and cook for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add the stock, honey and seasoning.
5. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes.
6. 5 minutes before the tagine is cooked add the dried fruit and chick peas.
7. Adjust seasoning if required.
8. Remove from the heat and serve with couscous.