By David Tanis
Updated March 5, 2024
- Total Time
- 2 hours
- Prep Time
- 10 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour 50 minutes
- Rating
- 4(33)
- Notes
- Read community notes
This fragrant stew, redolent of cumin, coriander, ginger, allspice, fennel and cinnamon, is slowly simmered to tenderness. A lamb shoulder roast makes the most succulent stew, but thick bone-in shoulder chops are sometimes easier to find and work just as well. Let the meat rest a day or two in its own broth in the refrigerator. Reheating revs up the complex spice mixture. Then, grab a warm flatbread and get to dunking.
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- 3thick bone-in lamb shoulder chops (about 2½ pounds)
- Salt
- 2teaspoons ground cumin
- 2teaspoons ground coriander
- 2teaspoons ground ginger
- 2teaspoons hot paprika
- 2teaspoons red-pepper flakes, such as Aleppo, plus more to taste
- 1teaspoon ground allspice
- 1teaspoon ground fennel
- ½teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Olive oil
- 1large yellow or white onion, diced
- ¾cup canned crushed tomatoes with their juices
- 2cups cooked chickpeas, or use 1 (15-ounce) can, drained and rinsed
- 1dried bay leaf
- 2large carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise and cut into 3-inch chunks
- 2 or 3medium turnips, each peeled and cut into 8 wedges
- 2medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 3-inch chunks
- 1 or 2medium-hot green chiles, such as Anaheim, cut crosswise into ½-inch pieces
- ½small green cabbage, cut in wedges (optional)
For the Stew
For the Vegetables
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
740 calories; 50 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 22 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 34 grams carbohydrates; 10 grams dietary fiber; 11 grams sugars; 41 grams protein; 1101 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Start the stew: Lay the chops flat and season both sides with salt. In a small bowl, mix together cumin, coriander, ginger, paprika, red-pepper flakes, allspice, fennel and cinnamon. Pack the mixture generously on both sides of chops, using all of it. (You can wrap and refrigerate up to overnight, or continue cooking at this point.)
Step
2
Put a large skillet over medium-high heat and add enough olive oil to lightly coat the pan. When oil shimmers, brown the chops for 3 to 5 minutes per side, working in batches if necessary. Remove and set aside.
Step
3
Lower heat to medium and add more oil to the skillet, if needed. Add the diced onions and sprinkle with salt. Cook, stirring, until onions are softened and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes with their juices, stir and cook for 5 minutes more, until the tomatoes dry out a bit.
Step
4
Transfer onions to a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Add the browned chops, the chickpeas, bay leaf and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to bring to a gentle simmer, cover and cook until the lamb is fork-tender, about 45 minutes more. Turn off heat. Remove chops from pot. When cool enough to handle, cut chops into rough 1-inch chunks. Return meat chunks to the pot. Spoon off any rising fat. Taste and adjust seasoning of broth if necessary. (At this point, refrigerate overnight, if desired.)
Step
5
Prepare the vegetables: Set up a steamer or bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the vegetables for about 10 minutes, until firm-tender. Reheat the stew, if necessary.
Step
6
To serve, place a pile of vegetables in a large shallow serving bowl and ladle the stew over and around. Alternatively, arrange vegetables and stew in individual bowls. Sprinkle everything with red-pepper flakes.
Ratings
4
out of 5
33
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Cooking Notes
annette
How would you make this using a whole shoulder roast?
Sarah
Why not just do the lamb browning and onion sauteeing in the large dutch oven? One less egg to fr.....I mean one less pan to wash.
John Cheek
Lamb shoulder is very difficult to find. I've never seen anything but thin blade chops in supermarkets or leg, loin, or rib chops. Even farm markets don't have them. Where does the author get theirs?
dimmerswitch
Marjorie - re swapping in cut up leg for shoulder, I wouldn't. I have been cooking lots of lamb across a couple of decades and in my experience the sub in stew isn't a great one. See Eating Well comment here. I say 'ditto'. "Economical lamb shoulder tenderizes beautifully when leisurely cooked in a slow cooker. If you can't find boneless shoulder stew meat, do not substitute more-expensive lamb leg--it tends to dry out during slow cooking."
dimmerswitch
annette - you ask how to make this using whole shoulder roast. My suggestion is cut the roast into chunks, trim fat as needed, and go from there. Note Chef Tanis instructs cutting the shoulder chops into roughly 1" chunks before serving (step 4). If I were starting from shoulder roast (and I might in fact do that here) then I'd maybe do 1 1/2" 'ish' pieces to start.
dimmerswitch
Mostly per recipe for ingredients & technique. Made day prior to refrigerate then reheat & serve next day. Delicious flavors. Notes ingredients: 1) used bone-in lamb shoulder steaks (2) total of @ 2#. 2) equivalent amount white beans (Rancho Gordo) cooked from dry in place of chickpeas. 3) Used only carrots & turnips.Notes technique: 1) started on cooktop finished covered in 300 degree oven @ 2hrs. 2) separated broth from solids to let fat solidify to lift off then poured back in.
Skip
Looking for lamb shoulder roast? Try a halal butcher or market. I imagine that lamb shank would be good with this recipe. Another cut with lots of connective tissue that works best with slow cooking to make a succulent stew.
JBrianH
What’s “roasted” about this? It’s a stew, as the recipe itself says. Re: finding lamb shoulder: Middle Eastern and halal markets. No, it’s not going to appear in most conventional grocery stores.
chris bensick
This is a tasty recipe and worth repeating. But once you read and understand the steps involved the estimated prep and cooking time seems way too short. First, note that Tanis recommends refrigerating the meat with its spice rub for between several hours and three days. Then, the time to braise(not roast) shoulder chops to fork-tender is more like 2-3 hours, after browning, not 45 minutes. And plan extra time for the pita bread, too!
JSS
This was AMAZING! But I made changes: used 4 bone-in shoulder chops. Used 1 full can of diced tomatoes with juices, 2 cups of chicken broth instead of water. Added 1 diced sweet potato and 1 diced parsnip along with chickpeas and 1 can of diced green chilies. Cooked 1 hour. Removed meat from bones and added back with 2 diced zucchini. Simmered for another 1/2 hour. Served over quinoa. The complexity of flavor was wonderful. Reminded me of Tunisia, but better.
Max Van Gilder
Deeply spiced lamb shoulder with steamed vegetables works very well. Surprisingly so. I cooked this skeptically. Actually, stewed,spicy meat and steamed firm vegetables worked very well and I might try it with other stews.
Martha
What size can of tomatoes????? Guessing the 28 oz size but would like to confirm.....thanks
MitMoi
@Martha it says "¾cup canned crushed tomatoes with their juices". Since the regular size can is 14oz and a cup is 8 oz, you can use part of a small can of tomatoes (6oz = 3/4 cup).
Polly, the wayward Texan
Looks amazing - I am intrigued by the many layered spice combo! A question about an item on the ingredient list: “¾ cup canned crushed tomatoes with their juices“ What size can of tomatoes does this call for, and why not use the whole can?
Joanna
The spicing and vegetables look awesome. But I don't eat meat or poultry. Is there a suitable vegan option and method? Mushrooms and lentils for earthiness and umami? Seitan or tofu with some alterations in other ingredients to create some of the umami the meat would provide?
Michelle
Would bone-in turkey suffice? We don’t eat red meat (even the other red meat).
Equilibrist
Use bone-in lamb neck. I just made a lamb neck stew and even though there is less actual meat, the result was far more flavorful than the shoulders I’ve stewed in the past. I watch my meat consumption anyway, so I prefer more flavor and less meat.
JBrianH
What’s “roasted” about this? It’s a stew, as the recipe itself says. Re: finding lamb shoulder: Middle Eastern and halal markets. No, it’s not going to appear in most conventional grocery stores.
Lana
We made this as a weeknight dinner with the plan to have the rest as leftovers. Delicious and not too hard to make. 1. We put the spice rub on the lamb chops yesterday and let them sit overnight in the fridge. 2. We halved all the spicy spices in the rub, and the heat was perfect for our palate. 3. Next time, we’ll reduce the amount of vegetables by about a third. Also, we needed 15 minutes of steaming. 4. Serve with a soft baguette to sop up the liquid. Flavorful and colorful dish!
dimmerswitch
Mostly per recipe for ingredients & technique. Made day prior to refrigerate then reheat & serve next day. Delicious flavors. Notes ingredients: 1) used bone-in lamb shoulder steaks (2) total of @ 2#. 2) equivalent amount white beans (Rancho Gordo) cooked from dry in place of chickpeas. 3) Used only carrots & turnips.Notes technique: 1) started on cooktop finished covered in 300 degree oven @ 2hrs. 2) separated broth from solids to let fat solidify to lift off then poured back in.
Skip
Looking for lamb shoulder roast? Try a halal butcher or market. I imagine that lamb shank would be good with this recipe. Another cut with lots of connective tissue that works best with slow cooking to make a succulent stew.
John Cheek
Lamb shoulder is very difficult to find. I've never seen anything but thin blade chops in supermarkets or leg, loin, or rib chops. Even farm markets don't have them. Where does the author get theirs?
Sarah
Why not just do the lamb browning and onion sauteeing in the large dutch oven? One less egg to fr.....I mean one less pan to wash.
Marjorie
Could be use a bone in leg of lamb and cut it up?That’s all my market has
dimmerswitch
Marjorie - re swapping in cut up leg for shoulder, I wouldn't. I have been cooking lots of lamb across a couple of decades and in my experience the sub in stew isn't a great one. See Eating Well comment here. I say 'ditto'. "Economical lamb shoulder tenderizes beautifully when leisurely cooked in a slow cooker. If you can't find boneless shoulder stew meat, do not substitute more-expensive lamb leg--it tends to dry out during slow cooking."
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