I am weirdly obsessed with this at the moment, making it whenever people come over, or to sit and be reheated whenever I’m peckish. It’s seriously easy, cooks low and slow, and tastes like it’s doing you a lot of good.
I know it feels like it’s too hot for stews, but this Moroccan tagine, which is a Jamie Oliver recipe though I’ve fiddled with it slightly, doesn’t feel heavy or overpowering, even in this heat.
The only thing that’s a bit of a pain in the bum for this recipe is that the beef is coated in ras el hanout and needs to be left for at least an hour, but preferably over night. I’ve made my own, but you can buy it ready made. Ras el hanout means ‘top of the shop’ and is a mix of the best spices the maker has. In Jamie Does it lists what the mix usually includes, so mine is whatever I had from that in my little collection of spices: nutmeg, cinnamon, mace, turmeric, cayenne pepper, peppercorns, ground ginger, cloves, cardamom, chilli flakes and allspice.
So! What you’ll need:
- 600g cubed beef
- One white onion, finely sliced
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
- Tin of chickpeas (you can make it two if you’d like to bulk it out a bit)
- Tin of chopped tomatoes
- 400ml vegetable stock
- 1 large butternut squash
- Ras el hanout
- Ground cumin
- Smoked paprika
- Chilli flakes
- Turmeric
Rub the beef with one or two tablespoons of ras el hanout, a tablespoon of the cumin, another of the paprika, and the same again with the chilli flakes and turmeric. Make sure all the meat is coated and leave it in the fridge for as long as you can.
Heat a good glug of rice bran or vegetable oil in a laaarge pan on a low heat on the stove and add the meat, cooking it for five minutes or so before adding the onion and garlic and cook until they start to sweat. Add the chickpeas, tomatoes and 200ml of stock. Cover and leave to cook on a very low heat for an hour and a half to two hours.
Chop the squash into large chunks (I tend to peel it but it depends how lazy you’re feeling) and add to the pot with the rest of the stock along with two teaspoons of chilli flakes and a teaspoon of paprika. It sounds like a lot, it is. You haven’t eaten this though so whatever, man. Give it another hour and a half or so to cook down.
If it seems a bit watery cook for a bit longer with the lid off. Or go mad and add a tablespoon of cornflour. The best way to do this is to put some of the liquid in a mug and whisk the four into that so there are no lumps and add it back into the pan.
Serve with a good twist of black pepper and sea salt, couscous and a big green salad.
sarahduggers 
What?!