This month I’m teaching a course called ‘Exploring Local Foods’ for the University of Victoria at the community kitchen at the Thrifty Foods Tuscany Village store in Victoria. Last night featured guest speakers Tom Henry, a Metchosin farmer and editor of Small Farm Canada magazine, along with Lyle Young of Cowichan Bay Farms and Farmhouse Poultry, a processing plant he built when many of the other plants on Vancouver Island were shutting down. They talked about how they raise and process their animals and the state of small-size agriculture on Vancouver Island. While they talked, I cooked. A Moroccan chicken tagine using thighs and boneless chicken breasts Lyle brought from the plant. Delicious!
So here’s the recipe: This was originally made with lamb shanks, so just substitute an adequate number of thighs for the number of guests, I would say at two good-sized thighs per person would be right.
Braised Moroccan Lamb Shanks
(serves 4)
This dish is a ‘put-it-in-the-oven-and-forget-it-dish’ for the most part and is easily expandable to accommodate a crowd. Preserved lemons are not a ‘must’ for this dish but add an intriguing flavour. They are available in most Mediterranean or Middle Eastern markets, or you can find a few recipes to make your own here:
Ingredients:
4 large lamb shanks (ask for the really meaty parts)
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 preserved lemons, cut into 4 pieces each
8 pearl onions or shallots, peeled
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into two pieces
1 large bulb of fennel cut into chunks (optional)
8 large cloves garlic, peeled
8 dried apricots
1 cinnamon stick
6 cardamom pods
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 cups red wine
Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a large ovenproof pot. Brown the shanks on all sides, then add all the lemons, vegetables and spices and enough red wine to cover the shanks. Cover the pot and put it into a 350-degree preheated oven for at least 2-3 hours. Check once an hour to see if you need to add any more wine, or water if preferred. The shanks are done when they are fork-tender and pulling away from the bone. Remove the cinnamon stick and the cardamom pods before serving. Serve in a bowl with the juices on top of couscous, or mashed potatoes. Serves 4.
