Spicy lamb with lentils
Oh fall how I missed you and your glorious ability to bring joy and joyness through braised dishes. Oh hell who am I kidding our freaking summer was so mild it felt like fall never left us.
The lentils also were a direct result of the search to find semolina flour in this bloody town. While wondering the aisles of the co-op I spied them in the gigantic bulk container and figured aww poor lentils I will fill my container full of you. As usual Jeff fashion I buy something that I have zero clue what I am going to do with it (I really need to just take a week and work on hammering down the amount of items I have bought because I wanted to experiment with a certain ingredient).
After googling for a while and looking through cookbooks I finally started to say screw it and just start throwing a ton of stuff together. The dish originally started out with chicken but in a hunt to find chicken in my freezer I spied a package of lamb stew meat. I love lamb but for some strange reason I never give it any love.
So here is my final product. If you do not have port fear not because at the end of the day it really did absolutely nothing for the dish that I could tell.
I am still taking applications for leaf rakers……..
For this recipe you will need:
- 1 pound of stew lamb meat
- 1 cup lentils (I used split red lentils)
- 1 onion finely diced
- 2 jalapenos finely diced
- 3 cloves of garlic finely diced
- 1 inch piece of ginger finely diced
- 1/2 cup or port
- 1 28 ounce can of tomatoes juice and all
- 2 cups of chicken stock
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoon ground chili (ancho and guajillo)
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne (use less for less spicy)
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/4 cup of plain yogurt
- all-purpose flour
- kosher salt and black pepper
- Canola oil and butter
Steps to success:
- Salt and pepper the lamb and dredge in flour.
- In your favorite Dutch oven over high heat add in the oil and butter and once the butter stops foaming add in the lamb. Do not overcrowd the pan so work in batches if necessary.
- Remove the lamb once it is browned all over and set aside.
- Drain all but 1 tablespoon of the oil and add in the onions and jalapeno.
- Saute until softened and add in the garlic, ginger, cardamom, cumin, coriander, chili, paprika, and cloves. Cook this mixture for 30 seconds.
- De-glaze the pot with the port.
- Add in the tomatoes, stock, lamb, bay leaves, and bring this mixture to a boil.
- Reduce to a simmer, cover, and let it cook for about an hour and a half.
- Add in the lentils and cook until the lentils are done (the lentils I bought were split so they were done in about 20 minutes so adjust accordingly).
- Turn off the heat and stir in the yogurt.
- Serve and enjoy!
I got bored and started screwing around with different angles because I feel like I always default to the same old shots. Out of all the pictures I took this is the only one I felt really came out.
I offered to help you with the leaves and you said no… don’t lay guilt on me via your lentils…
This sounds like a dish we would really like! We’ve been wanting to mess around more with lentils ever since having them with carrots puree at a restaurant a few weeks ago.
ohh! my husband would love this! i am definitely making this for him!!
did you get an Ego light? your photos are killer. really nice Jeff.
I think your pictures look great! I’m not a big fan of lentils though. I keep trying them, but it’s just not clicking.
Oooh, nice!! It’s great when rummaging around the kitchen makes something really good.
You didn’t get my app for leaf raker? Hmmm, must have gotten lost in the mail. Yeah, that’s it…
I eat lentils a lot. This is a nice dish for a change. Like the pics.
Neither one of us has cooked with lentils before, but there’s no reason not to try this for a winter soup or stew!
I so love lentils & this dish looks truly fabulous, Jeff!
Real comfort food! I so love all of the spices you ha
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM,…
PS: I have made the walnut cranberry bread that you recently emailed me!! It was fantastic!! Thanks again, my foodie friend!
wow! I love the color. I especially like that last picture.
Whoa Jeff, this dish is a beauty - full of all the flavors I love! YUM!
wow that looks so good I wish we will get a few colder days !!
I’ll take two bowls, please.
Great stew, I love the spicing!
The best dishes sometimes come from the screw this I’m chucking everything in together.
I love the flavor and texture of lentils but it’s so damn hard to find them in my college town. Great take on the dish though, looks like it was successful!
That looks like Moroccany perfection!
fabulous stew, Jeff! I love all the flavors!
fabulous stew, Jeff! I love all the flavors!
First time here on your blog and I’m loving it so far. I usually use lentils on barbecue but I guess this recipe is something that I’d like to try. The photos were mouth watering and I was kind a motivated to make one. I believe I could experiment a little and try some other meat, right?
Bravo my friend…looks like the perfect foil for a cold autumn night and good for mopping up with bread.
Looks great and really nice photos!
Mmm…more fun autumn braising. Love the lamb. The flavors you chose for this are really fascinating. It’s a very unusual combination that I”m sure was delicious. I think you did well with figuring out something to do with the lentils other than soup.
I am not a fan of lamb, but what you made looks yummie with lentil
Gorgeous photography, Jeff! Mild summer? And you didn’t share with me while we lived in sweltering heat? Rude! lol. Another great recipe.
what do you pay your leaf-rakers? do you cover relocation? if perks such as all-you-can-eat bread are included, i’ll get started immediately.
appetizing, hearty, and fall-appropriate dish, jeff. i like the unexpected inclusion of cardamom.