Lamb Couscous with Chickpeas and Zucchini

Spices serve an important role in the flavoring food as well as being used for medicinal purposes. I can not begin to imagine what it would be like not to have spices in my pantry just sitting there waiting to be used at a moment’s notice. Pepper is native to India and has been used in their cooking since 2000 BC! When it was introduced to Europe, pepper was highly prized and so valuable that it was often traded in lieu of gold coin or used as collateral. Pepper was historically both a seasoning and a medicine. It is the most widely traded spice in the world and as of 2008, Vietnam is the world’s largest producer and exporter of pepper. Different colors of pepper, be it black, white, green or pink are formed using different processes to produce the different colors.   For example, black pepper is formed from the still-green unripe drupes of the pepper plant. The drupes are cooked briefly in hot water, both to clean them and to prepare them for drying. The drupes are dried in the sun or by machine for several days, during which the pepper around the seed shrinks and darkens into a thin, wrinkled black layer. Once dried, the spice is called black peppercorn. Black pepper stimulates the taste buds in such a way that a message is sent to the stomach to increase hydrochloric acid secretion, thereby improving digestion. Hydrochloric acid is necessary for the digestion of proteins and other food components in the stomach.

Serves 12
recipe from Vegetable Harvest
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1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
fine sea salt
2 lbs. meat from a 3-pound leg of lamb, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1 cup of instant couscous
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons harissa, or to taste
2 cups good-quality chicken stock
freshly ground black pepper
3 cups cooked chickpeas
one 15 oz. can peeled Italian plum tomatoes in their juice
1 1/2 lbs. slender zucchini, washed, trimmed, and sliced into 1/4 inch rounds
1/2 cup mint leaves, cut into chiffonade

In a large bowl, combine the cumin, ginger, cayenne, cinnamon, and 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt. Toss to blend. Add the cubed lamb and toss too evenly coat the meat. Ste aside.

Place the couscous in a heat-proof bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 1 teaspoon of the harissa, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir to blend. In a medium saucepan, bring the chicken stock a boil over high heat. Pour the boiling stock over the couscous, stirs with a fork, and cover the bowl with the foil. Set aside.

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the remaining oil over high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the lamb and brown well on all sides. Do this in small batches and do not crowd the pan. As each batch is cooked, transfer the meat to a platter and season lightly with salt and black pepper. Return the meat and any cooking juices from the platter to the skillet, along with the chickpeas, remaining teaspoon of harissa, and the canned tomatoes and their liquid. Bring to a simmer over moderate heat and simmer for 2 minutes. The mixture should be broth-like. Taste for seasoning.

In another large skillet, beat the remaining tablespoon of oil over moderate heat until hot but not smoking. Sear the zucchini, cooking just until it begins to brown at the edges. Season lightly with salt. Arrange spoonfuls of the couscous on warmed dinner plates. Spoon the lamb mixture alongside. Add the zucchini over the lamb. Garnish with mint.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: I love how the spices lift all the ingredients especially the lamb. This dish is one to make again. Cookbook author, Patricia Wells, suggests “a good, bright young red with lots of muscle”. Try the vin de table Petit Vin d’Avril from the Domaine Clos des Papes. This good-quality wine is a nonvintage blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, and Mourvèdre.