Recipe: Lamb Tajine from Quercy with Blond Peas from Planèze

Name: Lamb Tajine from Quercy with Blond Peas from Planèze
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 120 min
Total time: 330 min
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 4 beautiful thick slices of farm-raised lamb neck from Quercy; 8 slices of farm-raised lamb breast; 200 g (7 oz) peeled sandy carrots cut into thick sticks (Créances if you can find them); 200 g (7 oz) long bitter turnips (if possible) cut the same way; 1 small green cabbage cut in 4, well cleaned, core removed; 1 large onion peeled and cut into large mirepoix; 4 garlic cloves, deveined and crushed; A little fresh grated ginger; Placed in a large tea infuser: thyme, lemon, bay leaf and coriander seeds; 2 tablespoons of good tomato paste (in summer, 300 g (10.5 oz) of ripe tomatoes cut into dice); 2 tablespoons of good quality ras el hanout; 200 g (7 oz) of blond peas from Planèze soaked in cold water 9 hours before (or cooked chickpeas added at the end); 50 g (1.75 oz) of blond raisins of good quality

By chef patrick Asfaux 4/5 (10 reviews) · 🍳 21 made it

Prep 30 min

Cook 120 min

Rest 3h

Total 5h30

Servings 6 serv.

A little bit of history. First of all, the word tajine is masculine, as you know, it's the name of the earthenware dish in which food is cooked slowly in steam. We find recipes dating back to ancient times. Thus, in old writings, we read about those served to the Grand Caliph Hârûn-al-Rachid, who reigned from 786 to 809. This period corresponds for us to the time of Charlemagne. The tajine is a dish called "Berber" originating from the indigenous people of North Africa, the Amazighs. This dish was also loved by the Romans who were able to cook these tajines in their earthenware ovens. Of course, for those observing Ramadan, you can replace our Quercy lamb with halal meat, and even if you wish, replace our peas with chickpeas.

Ingredients for 6 servings

Adjust for

servings

4 beautiful thick slices of farm-raised lamb neck from Quercy
8 slices of farm-raised lamb breast
200 g (7 oz) peeled sandy carrots cut into thick sticks (Créances if you can find them)
200 g (7 oz) long bitter turnips (if possible) cut the same way
1 small green cabbage cut in 4, well cleaned, core removed
1 large onion peeled and cut into large mirepoix
4 garlic cloves, deveined and crushed
A little fresh grated ginger
Placed in a large tea infuser: thyme, lemon, bay leaf and coriander seeds
2 tablespoons of good tomato paste (in summer, 300 g (10.5 oz) of ripe tomatoes cut into dice)
2 tablespoons of good quality ras el hanout
200 g (7 oz) of blond peas from Planèze soaked in cold water 9 hours before (or cooked chickpeas added at the end)
50 g (1.75 oz) of blond raisins of good quality

Step-by-step directions

1 First, take a large pot, pour in 2 tablespoons of olive oil and, when it is hot, sear your pieces of lamb. At the same time, drain your soaked blond peas, wash them, then place them in a pot with 2 liters (2.1 qt) of cold water, thyme and bay leaf. Cook gently, for about the same time as the tajine, approximately 2 hours. Only salt them 10 minutes before the end of cooking.

2 When your pieces are seared, salt and pepper them, add the onion, carrots and garlic. Sweat for 10 minutes, then add the ras el hanout and tomato paste. Pour in water until it reaches 5 cm from the rim, salt with coarse salt and add a little dried chili pepper. Wait for it to boil and allow 1 hour 30 minutes at a gentle simmer with the lid on. After this time, add the cabbage leaves, olives, raisins and cooked chickpeas if you are using them. If you are serving them, add 20 more minutes of cooking time.

3 There you have it, your tajine is ready. Taste it to check the seasoning and the cooking of the blond peas. Arrange attractively in a large deep round dish or a tajine. Drain the blond peas, remove the thyme and bay leaf, then add the hot cooking liquid from the tajine and serve them on the side.

Chef Patrick's Comment

Thanks to my friend Henri Bouniol who still grows his magnificent blond peas without fertilizers or pesticides (from the same family as chickpeas but finer) in Planèze near Saint-Flour, in the heart of Auvergne.