Meltingly tender, this Morrocan Instant Pot Lamb Tagine is aromatic and flavorful and so easy to make using an Instant pot or pressure cooker . Serve it over Basmati Rice, Cous Cous or Everyday Quinoa and optional Tfaya for a hearty delicious meal.
This recipe for Instant Pot Lamb Tagine came about after our recent trip to Morocco. Fragrant Moroccan spices, preserved lemon, olives and herbs infuse the lamb with flavor.
The best part is how tender the lamb shoulder comes out after only 40 minutes in the Instant Pot pressure cooker.
This Lamb Tagine is tangy and savory, rather than sweet, and it is traditionally made with Ras el Hanout– a Moroccan spice blend that varies greatly from region to region (or even from household to household).
For this tagine recipe feel free to make your own Ras el Hanout, or purchase this lovely Villa Jerada Ras El Hanout – so good!
This month I’ve partnered with the American Lamb Board to create some new lamb recipes for you to try out.
Serve the Lamb Tagine over Couscous with optional Tfaya – a Moroccan condiment made with caramelized onions and raisins. A simple delicious meal that will take you away to warm and far-off places.
Delicious and easy, this Instant Pot Moroccan Lamb Tagine is truly a snap to make. Let us know what you think in the comments below!
PrintInstant Pot Lamb Tagine
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4-6
- Category: Main
- Method: Pressure Cooker
- Cuisine: Moroccan
Description
Meltingly tender, Instant Pot Lamb Tagine is aromatic and flavorful and so easy to make using the pressure cooker setting. Serve it over Cous Cous and optional Tfaya for a hearty delicious meal.
Ingredients
- 2–3 tablespoon olive oil, butter or ghee
- 2 large onions, sliced
- 6–8 cloves garlic, rough chopped
- 3 extra-large carrots, peeled and sliced into 1 ½-2 inch thick rounds ( at a diagonal)
- 2 pounds lamb -stew meat (shoulder) cut into 1 -2-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons, preserved lemon, rough chopped
- 1 cup chicken stock (or water and 1 bouillon cube)
- lemon juice from 1/2 medium lemon
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon per pound meat)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon coriander
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- 1 cinnamon stick ( or ¼ teaspoon cinnamon)
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 bay leaves
Garnish:
- 1/2 cup– 1 cup green or kalamata olives, sliced in half
- ¼ cup fresh Italian parsley chopped
- 4–6 cups cooked couscous
Tfaya (Caramelized Onion Raisin Relish) – Optional
Instructions
Set Instant Pot to saute function and heat the oil. Add the onions, and saute 3-4 minutes until fragrant. Add the garlic, saute 1-2 minutes, add the carrots, lamb, preserved lemons, and chicken stock and lemon juice scrape up all the browned bits.
Add the salt, cumin, coriander, paprika, ginger, pepper, turmeric, cinnamon stick, cloves and bay leaves. Give a good stir. Set to Pressure cook on high for 45 minutes. Let pressure release manually or naturally. Add the olives to the pot and stir to warm.
Taste, and adjust salt and pepper if needed. For more heat, add chili flakes. If tagine tastes too tangy for you, add a teaspoon or two of honey to help balance the flavors. To make it tangier, add more chopped preserved lemon or lemon juice.
Serve the lamb over a platter of couscous, spooning a little of the flavorful broth over top. Sprinkle with fresh parsley, chili flakes and optional Tfaya. Slivered almonds are also nice.
To make the Tfaya: Saute the onions in the oil until tender and caramelized over med heat in a medium pot. Add remaining ingredients, bring to a simmer, and simmer gently for 15- 20 minutes.
Notes
Feel free to sub 2-3 tablespoons Ras el Hanout for the spices. Or thy this brand- Villa Jerada Ras El Hanout!
Keywords: lamb tagine, instant pot lamb tagine, instant pot lamb recipes, lamb stew, lamb instant pot, moroccan lamb, instant pot lamb stew, instant pot recipes, lamb recipes
This was delicious made with lamb shanks and was scarfed down by the family. Served with couscous with lemon zest, parsley and thyme.
★★★★★
This was a hit. Husband is eating nightshade-free and it is so nice to be able to make a recipe without adjusting to remove potatoes or tomatoes. This one really works. Yielded 6 servings for us, that’s 3 meals for two! End result was a bit soupier than photo shows, but the broth is wonderful. For our taste, the lemon makes it shine, and it did not need the chili flakes or extra brine. Also used shoulder steaks, but trimmed carefully to reduce fat in the lamb before cooking. This will be on the monthly menu all winter!! Thanks Sylvia!!
Great to hear Ellen!
Great recipe, thank you! Very quick and easy to make…
I added a tin of tomatoes and a few chopped apricots to the tagine. I also used chopped apricots in place of the raisins which was OK but a little too sweet. A small dash of vinegar may have brought it back a bit…
We served it with salad, flat bread and cauliflower rice…
Delicious! x
★★★★★
We’ve made this with lamb shank and lamb shoulder steaks, I suspect it works with any available cut….it has exceptional flavor and could not be more simple.Make this!!!!
★★★★★
This was delicious! I didn’t have any ground ginger, but it came out wonderful! I added potatoes and extra chicken stock so it would be more of a stew and it was perfection!
★★★★★
What is the long brown with yellow middle thing that is in your images, I can’t work it out. Looking at the ingredients list has left me clueless. Thanks, and thanks for recipe.
They are carrots- just a different variety!
I have a boneless leg of lamb. Will this work or is it too tender a piece?
It should work!
This turned out really tasty. Love how tender the lamb gets in the instant pot. Served it over quinoa and skipped the raisin part.
★★★★★
This looks delicious. Do you have instructions on how to cook if you don’t own an instapot ?
Kate I think you could cook it exactly the same way in a dutch oven on the stove but it would take 1.5 -2 hours to get the lamb tender.