Simple & Delicious, Middle Eastern Lamb Stew with chickpeas and fragrant spices- a fast flavorful wholesome meal, that can be made in an Instant Pot!
The ego loves being “offended”. ~Eckart Tolle
Here’s a recipe for Instant Pot Middle Eastern Lamb Stew with chickpeas and fragrant spices that will warm you to your bones. It takes 15 minutes of hands-on time before finishing off in an Instant Pot using the pressure cooker setting.
This can also be made on stovetop, then finished in the oven, but know it will take twice as long. Whichever way you choose to go, the flavors will satisfy. Serve the stew over basmati rice, everyday quinoa, or if going grain-free, try cauliflower rice.
How to Make Middle Eastern Lamb Stew!
Here I’ve used stew meat- cut from lamb shoulder. I’ve opted for local, sustainably-raised American lamb, which seems more meaty and sweeter in flavor than imported lamb. It’s also fresher, having traveled far fewer miles to get here.
Here I’ve used stew meat- cut from lamb shoulder. Lamb leg would also work. I’ve opted for local, sustainably-raised American lamb, which seems meatier and sweeter in flavor than imported lamb. It’s also fresher, having traveled far fewer miles to get here.
This week I’ve partnered with The American Lamb Board who is offering great prizes this month in celebration of Friendsgiving! If you are a fan of lamb, you won’t want to miss out on this, so make sure to enter!
If Middle Eastern Spices are not your thing, this simple Irish Lamb Stew would work great in the Instant Pot too!
If using an Instant Pot, brown the onion and lamb using the sauté setting. Once the rest of the ingredients are in, set the pressure cooker on high for 50 minutes. The lamb will turn out perfectly tender and infused with the most delicious Middle Eastern Spices.
If cooking this Middle Eastern Lamb Stew on the stovetop, sear in a dutch oven, add the rest of the ingredients, then place in a 325F oven for 1¾- 2 hours.
Serve alongside quinoa, basmati rice or even roasted cauliflower or cauliflower rice.
Instant Pot Lamb Stew infused with Middle Eastern Spices….a fast and easy weeknight dinner that requires only 15 minutes of hands-on time before letting the Instant Pot work its magic.
For more Instant-Pot recipes, be sure to check out my favorite Ethnic Instant Pot Recipes from around the Globe!
If you try this recipe, be sure to let us know by leaving a comment, rating, and tagging a picture #feastingathome on Instagram.
Cheers, friends!
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Instant Pot Middle Eastern Lamb stew
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 60 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 4
- Category: Main
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Description
Instant Pot Middle Eastern Lamb Stew with chickpeas and fragrant spices- a simple flavorful wholesome meal. Serve over quinoa, basmati rice or cauliflower “rice”. | www.feastingathome.com
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, butter or ghee
- 1 ½ –1 ¾ pounds lamb stew meat ( shoulder, leg or shank) cut onto 1 ½ inch cubes
- 1 onion, diced
- 4–6 garlic cloves, rough chopped
- 1 teaspoon of each: salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, and cumin seeds ( seeds are optional, add another teaspoon ground cumin if no seeds)
- ½ teaspoon chili flakes ( Aleppo Chili flakes are nice) and more for garnish
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
- 2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
- 1 1/4 cups chicken stock or broth
- 1 x 15 ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- ¼ cup raisins or dried apricots (chopped), or even dried currants
Serve with cooked quinoa, couscous or basmati rice & garnish with fresh Italian parsley or cilantro leaves and extra chili flakes.
Instructions
Turn the Instant Pot on and set it to the Sauté function. Heat the butter or oil and saute the onions for 3-4 minutes until fragrant. Add the lamb, garlic, salt and all the spices and saute for 5 more minutes until fragrant. Add the vinegar, tomato paste, honey, stock, chickpeas and raisins and stir until combined.
Cover and set the Instant Pot (or pressure cooker) to pressure cook setting for 50 minutes on normal/high. Naturally release.
Let the pressure release and give a stir. The lamb will be tender and break apart easily. If you prefer it less juicy, return to saute function and cook off some of the liquid. ( Note that it will thicken a bit as it sits)
Serve over quinoa, rice or cous cous with some fresh cilantro or parsley.
The leftovers taste even better the next day as the flavors have more time to meld.
Notes
Alternatively you can cook this on the stove top in a oven proof dutch oven. Pre heat the oven to 325. Brown the onions in the ghee or butter then add the garlic, lamb, salt and spices, cooking for 5 -6 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients – all except the raisins, and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in the oven and bake 2 hours, adding the raisins about an hour or 1 ½ hours into the baking time.
After two hours the lamb will be very tender. If you like a little more browning, give a quick broil to the pot uncovered.
LAMB: This recipe is designed for “tougher” cuts of lamb- shoulder, leg, etc., that need longer cooking times to tenderize. Please don’t waste already tender lamb chops or lamb loin on this recipe. You can also use beef stew meat or even goat.
Keywords: Lamb Stew, instant pot lamb stew, instant pot lamb recipes, middle eastern lamb stew, moroccan lamb stew, instant pot recipes lamb
This is delicious! Easy to make and so much flavor, thanks for sharing!
★★★★★
Thanks Kathy- glad you enjoyed this!
Loved this dish! Followed the recipe exactly and it was delicious! Will be making it again for sure.
★★★★★
This has quickly become a favorite recipe in our home. I have used both lamb and beef to prepare it and it is very good with tons of flavor. I might even try it with faux beef crumbles or tofu for a vegetarian version when my son visits. I have recommended this recipe to others and my husband raves about it.
★★★★★
Thanks so much Mary- glad you enjoy!
Do this in the instant pot but add potatoes, carrots, mushrooms & you will thank us. The seasonings & preserved lemon make this stew a gourmet treat.
Prepare rice or couscous.
We served it to a group of 11 to 13 years old as one of our around the world dishes & it was a hit. Have prepared at least 6 times & it never gets old.
★★★★★
Thanks for the suggestion Mary! Will have to try that.
Really outstanding! I had a lamb neck roast from a local farm and was worried it would be too tough a cut for this dish but it was perfect–so tender. And the flavors were awesome. I used apricots and beef stock, as I didn’t have chicken stock on hand. Served with a side salad of cucumbers and feta. THANK YOU. I will be making this many, many more times in the future!
★★★★★
Awesome Stacy!
This recipe is amazing, and easy to make. Every time I make this for guests, they love it. Definitely one of my favorites!
★★★★★
Lovely lamb dish. I’m making it again for dinner tonight.
★★★★★
Hello! I just made this tonight and was huge hit. Very easy, delicious and aromatic. Served it with south indian dosas. This recipe is a keeper! Thanks!
This was a really good recipe. I think it might be the first one that I was motivated enough to actually comment on. I do enjoy middle eastern food, having visited the region for work on many occasions. I thought that the honey and raisins might make it a bit too sweet, although that is part of the character of these dishes, but the balance was really good.
I might just check out some of your other recipes!
★★★★★
Thanks, Conlin- glad you enjoyed it.
I made this recipe recently and truely loved it! Thanks so much! Only challenge I had was that for me it burnt a bit in my pressure cooker when I left it on high for so long… I was still able to save the dish… but I wonder if more liquid could help here?
I had replaced the chickpeas with 2 carrots instead for easier digestablity and I thought it went together well.
Also have you tried doubling this recipe… what would this mean to the cooking time? I’m having guests over soon so would like to make it for them.
★★★★★
Hi Bettina- not sure why it burnt here, sorry about that. In theory, you should be able to double recipe with same cooking time, but I haven’t tried, and I personally might add a couple more minutes. 🙂
I was wondering if I could make this recipe with chicken?
★★★★★
I haven’t tried this with chicken but- if you did, timing in the instant pot would be much less.
Amazing!!! The flavors are melt in your mouth! I used golden raisins to sub for apricots. Huge hit.
★★★★★