this sweet tasting moroccan dish is a combination of the delightful, traditional spice mix, ras-el-hanout, together with sweet, syrupy pears.
First published at www.transformationcookbook.com
Ingredients:
canola oil cooking spray
700g lean beef, cut into 3cm chunks
2 brown onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2 tsp ras-el-hanout
400g butternut pumpkin, peeled & cubed
1 red capsicum, deseeded & cut into chunks
1 cup frozen peas
6 Roma tomatoes, chopped
Sweet Pears:
2 tbsp honey
1 lemon, freshly squeezed
4 firm pears, cored & cut into wedges
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground allspice
4 cloves
2 tbsp sultanas
Pears: Place 1.5 cups cold water and all ingredients except sultanas into a saucepan and bring to the boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 20 mins until pears are tender. Drain syrup into a small jug and set both pears and syrup aside.
Step 1: Spray heavy-based flameproof casserole dish with oil and heat over high heat. Cook beef in batches, searing on all sides. Transfer to a large plate.
Step 2: Reduce heat to medium, respray and cook onion for 3-4 mins until soft. Add garlic, ginger and stir in ras-el-hanout spice blend. Cook, stirring frequently, for 1 min. Return beef to tagine, pour in pear syrup and enough water to just cover the meat and bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and cook gently for 50 mins.
Step 3: Add pumpkin and capsicum and continue cooking for another 30 mins, until meat is tender.
Step 4: Add Heat 1 tsp butter/marg in frypan, add pears and cook for 2-3 mins until golden. Add pears, sultanas, peas and tomatoes to the tagine, cover and warm for 5 mins on low heat.
Tip:
• Top with chopped coriander.
• You can substitute pears with other sweet options such as prunes, apricots or peaches.
• You can substitute ras-el-hanout for garam masala or curry powder.
