Heat olive oil in saucepan on medium to high heat and sauté onions and garlic for about 10 minutes until tender.  Increase heat to high and add lamb, turmeric, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper and brown on all sides.  Stir in saffron, cinnamon, mint, coriander, ginger, tomatoes, tomato paste and chicken stock.  Reduce head to low and simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.  Add carrots and simmer and additional 1/2 hour and add zucchini, butternut squash and garbanzo beans and simmer an additional 1/2 hour until all vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed.

Serve over a bed of couscous.

NOTES:  I could only find shoulder of lamb locally cut that had the bone in and there was a considerable amount of waste with this cut of lamb.  Maybe next time I can find a better cut of meat or increase the amount of meat before the trimming stage!

The above recipe is my compilation and modification of different Moroccan lamb stew recipes collected from the internet and a few ingredients chosen from memory while in Morocco, Africa from 1965 to 1967.  I left out some traditional ingredients such as dried prunes, dates, walnuts, dried apricots and honey to make the recipe less sweet to the taste, however it is fantastic with those traditional ingredients!  Served without couscous is nearly sacra-religious.

Also, my version of couscous is a little different from the traditional recipes but not too far off the main trail.  Most simply steam the couscous which is a type of pasta made from semolina  flour which is more or less bland tasting by itself but that is open for debate and different opinions.  Couscous is traditionally served with a spicy type of stew or sauce to add flavor to the couscous.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

The customary and traditional cooking utensil for this type of dish is a Tagine  or a  couscoussier  with the Tagine mostly made out of fired clay with a special dome shaped lid to retain all the moisture. The traditional couscoussier is normally made from malleable metals such as copper, however commercial units sell from around 60 to over 200 dollars for a hand hammered copper unit and less for one that is spun or die formed.  The secret or beauty of Tagine style of cooking requires far less liquid to cook with while retaining nearly all the moisture and very much like the Towne Craft waterless cookware.

Moroccan Lamb Stew served over a bed of couscous on 12-27-08.  My bride's comments were it was "a little too spicy for her and a different set of spices than she was was use to."  My version of Moroccan Lamb Stew with couscous was just right for me since I can handle more spicier foods than my bride.  The textures, flavors and contrasting colors of this dish is outstanding.  The butternut squash will remind you a little of a white potato taste and texture wise and readily takes on the flavor of the lamb stew.  The above pix doesn't doe justice to the dish.  When I do a retake of this recipe, I will take a better pix due to more experience in the food styling area and a better camera and light system.

If memory serves me correct, couscous and lamb stew were served in a very large special dish/platter that had around the perimeter a deep channel or canal formed that held the couscous and the center portion of the dish contained the spicy lamb stew, whereby the couscous remained dry.  Traditionally, the group would sit around the serving dish/platter and would reach in by hand and get a small portion of couscous and follow up with the lamb stew.  You would only eat with the right hand, otherwise you would get a pile of snickers, laughs and grins from the local Moroccans.  I will let you figure out on your own about eating with one hand.  However, we Americans or in this case foreigners, were allowed to use a less than traditional approach to eating the couscous and lamb stew if desired by being proved spoons/forks and a plate or bowl, however it was fun to learn and use the local established customs paying tribute to their customs.

It was not unusual to have a 4 or 5 course meal lasting more than several hours and was a great social event and treat more so than just eating to satisfy one's hunger. 

A good cup of hot Moroccan style mint tea with a light cookie would be the perfect ending to this fine Moroccan cuisine.

Following sequence pixs taken while preparing this dish.  You definitely cook in layers for this recipe, but it is worth the extra effort and time.  Click on thumbnails for a larger view.  Enjoy!

My bride did help with peeling a few vegetables and other prep work.

Web published by Bill aka Mickey Porter on 12-27-08 and updated on 04-05-19.

LEAVING ON A SPIRITUAL NOTE