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Mary Berry Lamb Tagine Recipe

Mary Berry Lamb Tagine Recipe

Mary Berry's lamb tagine is a fragrant, slow-cooked Moroccan-inspired stew with warming spices, dried apricots, and tender lamb.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 45 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 6 Portions
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: British
Calories: 480
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • Lamb Tagine:
  • 1.2 kg lamb shoulder in 4cm chunks
  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 large onions halved and finely sliced
  • 4 garlic cloves crushed
  • 3 cm fresh ginger finely grated
  • 2 tsp each ground cumin and coriander
  • 1 tsp each ground cinnamon ground ginger, sweet smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp each ground turmeric and cayenne pepper
  • 2 tbsp tomato purée
  • 1 tbsp rose harissa paste optional
  • 400 ml chicken or lamb stock
  • 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
  • 150 g dried apricots halved
  • 1 preserved lemon rind only, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp runny honey
  • Salt and pepper
  • To Finish:
  • 50 g toasted flaked almonds
  • Large handful fresh coriander roughly torn
  • Seeds of ½ pomegranate optional
  • To Serve:
  • Fluffy buttered couscous natural yoghurt, flatbreads

Method
 

  1. Season lamb — brown in batches in hot oil over medium-high heat until deeply browned all over. Remove each batch.
  2. Add remaining oil over medium heat. Cook onions 12–15 minutes until golden and caramelised. Add garlic and fresh ginger — 2 minutes. Add all ground spices — stir 2 minutes until fragrant. Add tomato purée — 1 minute.
  3. Add harissa if using. Add stock, tinned tomatoes, apricots, preserved lemon, and honey. Season. Return lamb — stir to coat. Bring to gentle simmer. Cover tightly — cook on lowest heat or in 160°C oven 1 hour 30 minutes – 2 hours until lamb is completely tender.
  4. Taste and season assertively. Scatter toasted almonds and fresh coriander. Add pomegranate seeds if using. Serve with couscous and yoghurt.

Notes

Brown lamb deeply on all sides — every minute of browning gives the sauce its depth and complexity.
Bloom spices in hot oil with the onions — develops the aromatics before any liquid is added.
Cook onions 12–15 minutes until genuinely caramelised — gives the sweetness and body of the sauce.
Make the day before — the tagine improves dramatically overnight.
Preserved lemon gives a specific character that is worth seeking out — in supermarkets, world foods aisle.
Freezes for up to 3 months — the lamb becomes even more tender on reheating.
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