Ras el hanout lamb with blood orange, olive and pumpkin seed salad
Meat mains
Ras el hanout lamb with blood orange, olive and pumpkin seed salad
Ras el hanout means 'top of the shop' in Arabic, which translates in this herb and spice mix to mean all the best the spicemonger has to offer. It's aromatic and warming, and goes particularly well with lamb.
Cook's notes
We've added a tangy blood orange and olive salad for seasonality, with hand-rolled giant couscous (maftoul) and pumpkin seeds for crunch and nutritional value. Dress it with the fresh-tasting yoghurt and mint dressing, made with Wootton White, a British feta-style cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp ras el hanout
- oil for frying, e.g. sunflower or light olive
- 4 lamb loin chops
- 100g maftoul
- 50g salad leaves
- 1 pot yoghurt
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp dried mint
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 lemon
- 1 pack Wootton White
- 2 blood oranges
- 60g pitted black olives – check for stray stones
- 25g pumpkin seeds
Method
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Step 1
Mix the ras el hanout with 2 tablespoons of oil in a shallow dish. Turn the lamb in the mixture and leave it to sit. Boil a kettle. Put the maftoul in a pan and add 500ml of boiling water. Bring back to the boil on the hob, then cook for about 15 minutes, until tender. Stir now and then and add a splash more water if needed to stop the pan drying out.
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Step 2
Meanwhile, wash the salad leaves. Mix the yoghurt in a small bowl with the paprika, mint, honey and juice of quarter of a lemon. Crumble in the Wootton White cheese and stir. Keep to one side. Peel and slice the oranges into thin rounds, then into half moon shapes. Heat your grill to a medium-high
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Step 3
heat. Lay a piece of foil on the grill tray and place the lamb loin chops on top, pouring over any juices from the dish.
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Step 4
Season with a little salt and pepper. Grill the lamb for 4 minutes on each side. Remove from the heat and leave them to rest while you finish the salad. Drain the cooked maftoul and rinse under cold water to cool it. Gently mix the salad leaves, maftoul, blood oranges, olives and half the pumpkin seeds.
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Step 5
Divide between 2 serving plates, finish with some yoghurt dressing and a few pumpkin seeds, and serve with the lamb.
