Lham Lahlou ~ Algerian Sweet Lamb Tagine

Lham Lahlou ~ Algerian sweet lamb tagine is a traditional North African lamb and fruit stew.
Usually reserved for the nights of Ramadan as or part of the Iftar meal to break one’s fast. It can and of course is eaten anytime you get the sweet meat urge. For us that is a cold winter evening.
Free from salt to prevent excessive thirst, handy for a day of fasting ahead and
full of sugar (to keep energy levels up for night prayers) in the form of dried fruit and cane sugar although I’m confident you could use some honey (better to use raw) instead of some of the cane sugar.
I adapted my recipe from La Petite Paniere blog (Gold Mine for Algerian recipes).
Lham Lahlou often has dry prunes, apricot and golden raisins along with fresh Quince. I had no quince and was fresh out of apples or pears so I used only dry fruit.
I am not a big fan of wet raisins (just so you know I’m fine with other dried then soaked fruit) so I reduced the amount of golden raisins from 100 to 50 grams but you can use 100 if you prefer.
This highly based fruit tagine can be made meat free but then you really do need a couple of  quince or firm apples / pears to give a difference in texture. I also added some crunch by scattering over a few toasted flaked almonds.
Beside providing sugar, dried fruit are a good source of fibre and well we all know the laxative effects of prunes right? all beneficial not merely when your body is fasting 29 or 30 days straight.
Cinnamon helps control blood sugar levels
I’m by no means a health profession but it’s well-known water is better absorbed by your body’s cells when sugar is floating along with it (technical terms have slipped by the wayside since my failed college science days), that being said it’s not advised you eat this everyday!
A sweet tagine of meat with dried fruits and flavoured with cinnamon and orange blossom water. A much-loved Algerian Ramadan recipe.
Persons
4
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes

NOTES

Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for upto 3 days or, upto 1 month in the freezer.

INGREDIENTS

  • ½ tbsp Butter or Ghee
  • 200 g Halal Mutton (or lamb or beef), boneless and trimmed
  • tiny pinch of Salt
  • 60 g Granulated Sugar
  • ¼ tsp Ground Cinnamon (or replace with a small piece of cinnamon bark)
  • 1 tbsp Orange Blossom Water
  • 100g Golden Raisins
  • 75g Prunes
  • 75g Dried Apricots

OPTIONAL GARNISH:

  • Handful of Almonds (whole, halved or flaked), toasted

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Soak the golden raisins in a small bowl of water, set aside. Dice meat into small chunks.
  2. In a 1.5-2L casserole pot over medium-low heat, add the butter followed by the meat and salt. Gently fry the meat, stirring often until sealed on all sides.
  3. Sprinkle cinnamon over meat, stir in sugar then allow to caramelize a minute or two before adding orange blossom water, shortly followed by hot water – enough to cover the meat by about 2 inches.
  4. Cover and simmer over low-medium heat for about 30 minutes, until meat is almost tender.
  5. Drain raisins and add to the pot along with other dried fruits. If needed, add more water to the pot to just cover fruit . Simmer until all fruits are plump and soft, 15+minutes. The sauce should have reduced and become syrupy. Serve warm, or at room temp in small individual dishes and if using, garnish with toasted almonds.
Summary
Lham Lahlou ~ Algerian Sweet Lamb Tagine
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Lham Lahlou ~ Algerian Sweet Lamb Tagine

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