Recipe of the week
Adding the sweetness of dried fruit to the depth and richness of kid meat results in a dish that is one of the greats of world food, says James Whetlor. I always have a jar of ras-el-hanout in the kitchen – it’s a really useful seasoning. You could use 800g of diced kid here in place of the shanks, if you prefer. Serve with harissa and couscous.
Kid shank, apricot and pistachio tagine
Serves 4 4 kid shanks 2 tomatoes, roughly chopped 2 onions, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped 60g butter, melted 1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted and ground 2 tsps ras-el-hanout spice blend ½ tsp ground turmeric 400ml stock or water 10 saffron strands, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes small bunch of coriander, leaves chopped, stalks reserved 150g dried apricots, roughly chopped 1 medium preserved lemon, rind only, roughly chopped 50g pistachios, roughly chopped honey, to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper small bunch of mint, leaves picked, to serve • Mix together the shanks, tomatoes, t melted butter, onions, spices garlic, (apart fro from the saffron), 1 tsp of salt an and 1 tsp of pepper. Cover an and refrigerate for a few ho hours or overnight. • W When ready to cook, put the marinated me meat in a large saucepan and cook, uncovered, over a moderate heat for 20 minutes until a sauce has formed and thickened. • Add the stock or water, along with the saffron and its soaking water, the coriander stalks, dried apricots and the rind of the preserved lemon. • Cover and simmer gently over a low heat for about 2 hours or until the meat is completely tender. Top up with a little water if it dries out. • When the shanks are cooked, remove any excess fat from the sauce and add the pistachios, then the honey, and the salt and pepper to taste. • Serve scattered with the coriander and mint leaves.
Taken from Goat: Cooking and Eating by James Whetlor, published by Quadrille at £20. To buy from The Week Bookshop for £18, call 020-3176 3835 or visit www.theweek.co.uk/bookshop.