Moroccan-Style Lamb and Chickpeas

It Was so easy and delicious. Yes, I made a few changes :

I used dried Turkish apricots instead of raisins and I used Thai red curry paste instead of tomato purée. Mine was very spicy but super delicious. I’m so glad that I served it with the couscous arugula salad. It was just perfect.

I made date and pistachio bonbons for dessert with a Greek yogurt and honey dipping sauce. We felt like we were in Casa Blanca.

My family LOVE this recipe!!!  Quick and easy to make.  

I learned from this recipe that Moroccan style food has dried fruit mixed in with the meat. It is a tasty combination of sweetness from the fruits and heat from the cayenne. I served it over couscous and arugula. It is a filling home style dish that everyone should try.

Wonderful...I did make a few changes but I think the flavor and character of the dish was the same.  I used sweet potatoes instead of carrots (didn't have any), and I had some preserved lemon on hand so I used this instead of the lemon rind.  I also kept the drippings (from local, grass-fed lamb?  You betcha!) and thought it odd that these would be "discarded" and replaced with oil.  I happened to have plenty of frozen cilantro on hand, but I wondered how many people would in December.  This is a great use for ground lamb as most recipes are for meatballs or some meat-heavy dish with few vegetables.  The couscous was also great for sopping up the juices, and I had a lot of organic arugula to use up.  I don't often cook with lamb but as others have pointed out it may be just as good with beef or turkey.  It's at least an incentive to buy ground lamb again, and I'll be making this again regardless. 

I followed the recipe almost exactly with the exception that I used water instead of broth and I used white beans and chickpeas together, increasing total bean to meat ratio. Really yummy dish both kids and husband were happy.

I made this meal as a trial to see how my family felt about ground lamb. It was a huge success! Since discovering this dish about 3 months ago, we have made it at least 5 times. I think this recipe would do well with most any ground meat, although the lamb is my favorite :-) I have shared this with 3 other cooks who also raved about it. Easy and tasty!

This was soon delicious! I used frozen white corn and sliced celery in place of carrots. I used1 tbsp. dried cilantro instead of fresh. I also substituted the tomato paste a can of sliced tomatoes I used these substitutions because they were what I had at the time. 

The recipe was great and I will certainly make it often. Thanks for sharing this recipe.

Made the dish exactly like recipe and wouldn't change a thing. It was incredible

Will make it again

This recipe was simple - I customized the ingredients to what I had in my fridge. I used regular raisins instead of golden, and added chopped dates for some of the raisins. I added yellow and red bell peppers. I also added 1/8 cup of flour as a thickener -this meant the cooking time was v short.

Big thumbs up from husband!

I tried tonight and very tasty! I really do like lamb. I like the combination of spices. I added turmeric. Also, my poor eyes thought the green in the picture were greens not just cilantro. So, I made a pot of greens to go with the dinner. It was so good! I also had millet in the house so I had that as the grain! Will make again.

Excellent dish ! Made this for dinner . Didn't change a thing . I will make this again .

This was good. It was a simple recipe. We love lamb & Moroccan flavors, so this wasn't a stretch for us at all. I'd watch it on the ground red pepper. We used a little over half and that was good. We used over a cup of carrots and were glad we did. We served it over couscous. I felt like it needed something else, like some sort of bread. All in all, we liked it and would make it again.

out of ground lamb, used turkey. good flavors

Yum. I probably wouldn't make it for guests, but it is sure good and filling for a weeknight dinner. DH loved it too. I used a little of the lamb drippings instead of the oiI for maximum flavor. I made it with the suggested argula couscous and they went perfectly together. Adding to our regular rotation for sure!

I loved this recipe for a weeknight dinner. I had some collard greens that I needed to use so I included them in. I also used crushed red pepper instead of ground, and I would omit the olive oil. After cooking the lamb my pan had enough oil to coat the carrots and onion so no olive oil was needed. It was delicious!

Good fast and very "tasty"

Made this for dinner and both me and my husband loved it. I used brown rice with wild rice, the rice- a-roni pack, which meshed really well with the flavors of this dish. Also took the advice of the other reviewers and let it simmer for 45 minutes. This made a huge difference on how the meal turned out.

Very easy and my family loved it!

I made this for dinner tonight. I substituted the lamb for sirloin cut into very small piece because my wife does not like ground lamb. I like the flavors, but they are typical of Cooking Light's "Moroccan" dishes, and there are other Cooking Light Moroccan dishes I like better. My wife really liked this dish.

This dish was easy to make and fairly tasty. However, the next time I make it I will triple the amount of spices and use dried apricots (chopped) instead of raisins.

I used leftover boneless leg of lamb roast and added a few leftover veggies fennel, carrots and leeks. Instead of browning the meat I chopped it and added after the liquids! This was a wonderful use of leftover lamb! A healthy & quick weeknight meal - will use again ;)

How do you know what ingredients are available in what zip code? ALL the ingredients in Moroccan-Style Lamb are readily available in my zip code...I can even tell you where to get them.

Had 2 roundbone loin lamb chops, rubbed them in garlic (lamb begs for garlic), and sauteed, flipping them for about 5-6 min. and then followed the rest of the recipe, except substituted dried cranberries for the golden raisins and didn't have corriander or cilantro. Wonderful. Had marinated, chilled aspargus dressed with a bottled ginger seseme (all natural) dressing. A keeper! Have done this with chicken also for a large crowd. Made all the ingredients ahead, put it in baggies and assembled it the night of the party . Serve with couscous, rice, or quinua (sp?).

This is absolutely delicious! Always gets rave reviews. I use whole wheat couscous with arugula and it's perfect!

The spices were excellent and a good mix. I've never tried making anything resembling Moroccan and was impressed with the results. It made excellent leftovers.

This dish is so, so good. I only wish that I can try it with lamb some day, all the times I've made it I've used ground chicken because I can't find the lamb. In the magazine, they include a recipe for couscous with arugula and lemon juice that you can see in the photo, they are perfect together.

Although very simple to throw together, this dish has wonderful flavors and just dances off the plate! I used only 8 oz. of lamb (actually ground mutton from our farmer's market) and skipped the olive oil, thereby saving a lot calories. (My husband drizzled a bit of olive oil on the dish at the table). I did cut the chicken broth to one cup and the tomato paste to 2 TB because there was less meat than in the recipe. However, I used hefty rounded measurements of each spice because we like things flavorful. Served with pitas, steamed spinach, and a steamed cauliflower dressed with lemon juice, a teaspoon of warmed olive oil with a dash of garlic lightly cooked in it, and a sprinkle of garam marsala.

Made this tonight! Delicious.

Quick but vey tasty

Had it not been for the excellent ratings, I would never have tried this dish--THANKS to all who posted! This recipe is DA BOMB! My husband ate three helpings while raving about how delicious it was. He made me promise to make it again. I sauteed the carrots, onion and lamb together then added the rest of the ingredients and simmered for an hour. Added the cilantro and lemon juice just before serving. Yummy, easy and cheap. Made the whole wheat cous sous with spinach from the garden and it was perfect with the dish.

Very good flavor, though I felt it could have used a little more sweetness. Since my fiancé and I are not huge fans of raisins, we decided that we would use dried apricots for the next go 'round. I also added some green peas for color and texture and they were a nice addition.

This was so good and pretty easy. Next time I will look for ways to bulk it up with a little more veggies.

This is definitely quick and easy. I made it with the lamb, and it was very tasty. I'd like it a bit spicier, so I'll double the spices next time. I will definitely make this again.

Delicious. Made according to the recipe and simmered it longer to thicken it at the end. The couscous was good but rice would work in a pinch. Also thought that chopped dried apricots would be a good sub for the raisins. We love the CL turkey picadillo recipe with raisins, olives and capers. This is a yummy Moroccan twist on that. Comfort food and leftovers to take for lunch.

Great balance of flavor. I used ground turkey since I don't like lamb and it was still good. I also simmered it longer so the sauce thickened more. I loved the sweetness of the raisins and the texture of the chickpeas in this dish. Quick and tasty!

Terrific dish. Agree with simmering comments.

This was delicious! We love lamb, and we love the layers of flavors in this dish! It was perfect. Although some folks thought to simmer it longer, I think if the onions were a little crunchier they would add a nice texture. I would add a few more carrots next time too. And yes, the raisins are essential!

My husband and I loved this meal! It is essential to use lamb because that's where most of the flavor comes from. I too simmered for longer which helped thicken and meld the flavors. I will most definitely be making this again!

Very good, but I'd add more spice. We used ground chicken instead of lamb (we are not fans of lamb), so maybe that was the problem. there was enough cinnamon and cilantro, but we needed more salt and more of something else, we couldn't quite identify what. I agree with the other reviewers --- I did simmer it longer and I think that was necessary. I also think it would be great served with feta, crusty bread and oranges. In the future I'd add more carrots, too. Still, a good recipe with the potential of being a really great one!

Only had 4 oz of lamb, so used ground turkey to make up the difference, but the lamb flavor shone through. Took other reviewer's advice and let simmer for 45 min; when I had tasted at 5 min, none of the spices could be discerned, but after the simmer, WOW! Served with the couscous and arugula and was very pleased with the results. Added a little bit more of each spice, as we like things a little more spicy and I think that really made a difference. Will be making this again.

This is delicious, if you like lamb. It is perfectly spiced. I made it exactly by the recipe except that I did not make it as a quickie 4-minute simmer. I let it simmer for over an hour, and I believe that melded the flavors and created a hearty broth. The golden raisins are essential. However, I did substitute baby spinach leaves for the arugula, and that was fine. What a great idea to stir fresh greens into the couscous for improved nutrition and color. Would be nice with an orange, red pepper, feta cheese green salad and crusty bread.

Excellent. The blend of spices make this dish. We will definitely be making this again, next time we will substitute rice for the couscous. Would be happy to serve this to guests.