Lasagna
Regina Schrambling
9085 ratings with an average rating of 5 out of 5 stars
9,085
4 hours
Lamb Shank Tagine With Dates
- Total Time
- 3½ hours
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
Advertisement
Ingredients
Yield:4 to 6 servings
- 3large lamb shanks, about 4½ pounds
- Salt and pepper
- 6garlic cloves, minced
- 1tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 1tablespoon paprika
- 2teaspoons ground cumin
- 2tablespoons butter
- 1large onion, sliced, about 2 cups
- Small pinch saffron
- ½teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1tablespoon tomato paste
- 12-inch piece cinnamon stick
- 2teaspoons dried ginger
- ½cup chopped dates of any kind, plus 24 whole Medjool dates
- ½cup golden raisins, soaked in hot water to soften for 30 minutes and drained
- ½cup pomegranate seeds
- Cilantro sprigs, for garnish
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
732 calories; 43 grams fat; 21 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 17 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 33 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 24 grams sugars; 55 grams protein; 992 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
Trim shanks of excess fat, then season generously with salt and pepper. In a small bowl, combine garlic, fresh ginger, paprika and cumin, and smear over shanks. Leave shanks at room temperature to season for at least an hour. (Or you can wrap and refrigerate several hours, or overnight; return to room temperature before proceeding.)
- Step 2
In a Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Add onion, saffron and cayenne, and sprinkle with salt. Cook for 5 minutes, until somewhat softened. Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Lower heat to medium, add seasoned shanks and let cook with onions, turning occasionally, until meat and onions are lightly browned, about 10 minutes.
- Step 3
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Add cinnamon stick, dried ginger, chopped dates and water to barely cover (about 3½ to 4 cups) to the pot. Bring to a simmer, cover pot with a tightfitting lid and place in oven. Bake for 30 minutes, then turn heat down to 350 degrees. Check sauce and add water if level of liquid is below meat. Continue baking for another hour, checking liquid level occasionally, then test meat by probing with skewer or paring knife. It should be quite tender and almost falling from bone, but cooked no further. (Tagine may be prepared to this point up to two days ahead. Reheat gently in a covered pot on the stovetop, adding a little more water as necessary.)
- Step 4
Remove meat from pot and place in deep, wide serving bowl. Skim off any surface fat from cooking liquid in pot. Add whole dates to pot and simmer for a few minutes to reduce sauce slightly. Pour sauce and dates over meat. To serve, garnish with raisins, pomegranate seeds and cilantro sprigs.
Private Notes
Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.
Cooking Notes
Grace
If your lamb shanks aren't cut small enough, you'll end up using a lot of water (8-10 cups) to make sure they're covered during the baking step, which lead to me boiling the stock down for 2 hours. I removed the meat from the bones and left the bones in the stock to add flavor, and it all came out delicious, but just took a lot longer than expected.
Moral of the story: if your shanks are larger than 5" long, they're too long.
Helen Ullric
The first time I made this, following the recipe scrupulously, it was a big disappointment-too sweet, overpowering any other flavor. I tried it again today, eliminating the chopped dates entirely, upping the heat slightly and halving the medjool dates at the finish. Also used 4 cups of chicken broth for added richness, came up about three quarters of the height of the meat, which was plenty for a good braise. Added raisins and pomegranate seeds at the end. Lovely meal.
Susan Somerville
This recipe is superb for lamb, large chunks of beef, or chicken thighs. Only...
parboil and then roast the garlic and the parsnips. When really soft, mash into potatoes and add olive oil and S & P.
Serve with a roasted tomato salad with a special dressing.
Lizy
I didn't have any dates the day I decided to make this with lamb shanks I had in the freezer, so I substituted prunes which worked quite well!
Michael
No need for shanks to be covered. Just make sure there is always some liquid in the pot. The steam will cook the shanks nicely.
Ara J.
This dish was delicious, but too sweet. Next time, I would halve the dates to balance the flavor of the lamb with the sauce. You can taste as you go if you’re not sure how many dates to add, which I should have done. Also, to keep the cost down, I will try this with skinless, bone-in chicken thighs next time as well. Regardless, it’s a beautiful dish to serve with a wonderful aroma!
Dima
How did you change the recipe to adapt it to a pressure cooker version?
Joody
I loved this. It had so much flavor. I did the spice rub the night before. My saffron and spices were new - anyone complaining this was bland - it could be you have old spices. Also, I used 1 c. chicken broth and 3 c. water. My shanks were not completely immersed (not the right pot) so I made sure I turned them every 45 minutes or so. incredible. served over cauliflower "couscous" with saffron, raisins and toasted almonds. leftover brunch the next day: add a poached egg. #baller
Karen
Definitely recommend! We added 3 times the tomato paste and double the butter (cuz we just luv tomato) and didn't regret it. Also, we added 2 cups or so of cauliflower to tagine (cooked with the onion and spices, hence extra butter), and wow......delicious. I love cooking with my new tagine....wonder why none of the recipes ever include veggies??? The cauliflower was not soggy....it was perfect. Throw it on in! It won't disappoint ;)
sarah
Loved this recipe. Marinated Shanks overnight. Doubled cayenne and a bit more tomato paste. Used chicken stock instead of water. Made a day ahead, skimmed and reheated. Did not use whole dates at end but raisins and pomegranate a must. Delish. Leftovers that sat another day were even better. Might use toasted almond slivers as a garnish too...and add a bit of ground toasted almonds in the sauce next time.
Elizabeth
I make this with bone-in lamb neck and other types of stew meat instead of shanks. It is simply marvelous.
65th St Fan
This recipe didn't do much for me. I will say that the pomegranate seeds are absolutely necessary, as are the golden raisins, to introduce a little acid into an otherwise pretty sweet and bland recipe. Probably will not make again.
Mary
This is such a delicious recipe. I made it two days ahead, separated the meat from the stock to refrigerate, then removed the fat from the stock once it was chilled and reduced it down. The flavors are wonderful, just like being in Morocco!
Sandra
I used the smaller forequarter shanks (sweeter & more tender), & cooked in my Scanpan tagine on the stovetop at a low simmer! I also used half and half homemade chicken stock & water and only 2 cups. While I turned the shanks twice during the 2 hour simmering time, this was a small price to pay for a delicious result. The shanks were juicy & tender and the sauce just the right texture & flavor!
Just me
I used ras al hangout istead of the individual spices. Easy and flavorful
Kate
I debated to add this, but am going ahead even though I made this as a stew instead of lamb shanks. I made this as a stew to cater to family wishes, and it turned out great! I took previous reviewers comments to heart and halved the amount of dates. That was a good call. In lieu of pomegranate seeds, we drizzled pomegranate molasses over our bowls, after adding the raisins and cilantro. It was very tasty and did a great job of offsetting the sweetness of the dates.
Berndt
Litterary Heavenly!
Karen L
Delicious!! I used shanks that had about 1 inch trimmed from the end and followed the recipe. The only thing I changed was using regular raisins since I didn't have golden ones.
Rhys Williams
I made this recipe with only one tiny modification based on sensible feedback in the comments, this being I used boned shanks. That aside I did everything the same and the subtlety of this dish and balance is sublime. I defrosted pomegranate seeds, they were perfect. I’d like to congratulate Karen below on cooking a completely different dish and recipe to this Moroccan beauty. Next time I make a cheeseburger I’ll remove the cheese and add cauliflower, then call it a cheeseburger.
Mary
After reading that others found the dish sweet and in need of acid, I added 1/2 cup of unsweetened cranberry juice which was on hand, pomegranate juice would be more Moroccan and used chicken stock in lieu of water. I used 4 smallish shanks and doubled the spices, added a tsp of ground cardamom. I diced the dates I had on hand and didn’t finish the dish with more because of the sweetness factor. Golden raisins and pomegranate seeds are a must. Everyone loved it!
Colin
Yum! Very good. Had just under 2 lbs of bone in lamb shanks so added 1/2 head of cauliflower and carrot when adding broth. Cauliflower should be added later and was too mushy. Used 3 cups chicken broth, added 1 cup water after 30 min. 1/2 tsp cinnamon instead of stick. As others said, halved the dates and didn’t add any at the end. Was plenty sweet. Added 1-2 tbs of apple cider vinegar to brighten at the end. Served over Israeli cous cous.
Marie
Wonderful dish, a lot of typical North African flavors, I added fresh cranberry beans which made it an even more complete meal. We really enjoyed it a lot and fun to make !
Tim
It was fine (how could tagine not be?), but I agree with others who said flavors were uninteresting relative to what one might expect for tagine. Wouldn't make it again without 1) adding additional spices co-opted from other tagine recipes, and 2) using broth instead of water. Would also use far fewer dates to make less sweet. Lamb was cooked perfectly. Actually only takes 2.5 hours start to finish.
Ric
This was way too sweet for us. As others have said, the dates were overwhelming.
April
Less water and add cauliflower as previously suggested. I used Roma tomatoes instead of paste,
izzy
Made this recipe exactly as it was written - it was a lot of work but was hands down the best tasting dish I’ve ever cooked.
corleoja.
So delicious!!! I put chickpeas at the last 30 minutes. The pomegranate seeds and raisins were tasty and great idea. I didn’t put the dates in.
Boston
I am confused about the pomegranate seed garnish. Is that actually added to the meat or does it sit around edge of dish to look pretty? Would that be a mess to eat with the meat and having to spit all the seeds out?
SE nyc
Yummy - switched raisins for currants as did not want too sweet. Otherwise followed recipe. New family fave!
Steve G
Does "barely cover" mean that the meat is just barely 100% under liquid with little above it, or that barely any of the meat is covered but that most of it is uncovered.
Private notes are only visible to you.
Advertisement
