Tag Archives: pomegranate recipe

  • Lamb with Pomegranate, Mint and Broad Beans on a Bed of Couscous

    This time last year I was in Dubai on a media trip (one part of my job that definitely does not suck).

    So following on from the Rosewater, Cardamon and Pistachio Bundt Cake I made last week, here is another recipe inspired by my time there. I love the sweet and tart berry flavours of pomegranates but in Australia they’re considered quite exotic. In Dubai pomegranates were so readily available one could buy freshly squeezed pomegranate juice at street food stalls, which I did.

    Here are some pomegranates I photographed at the Dubai fruit and vegetable market.

    pomegranates at Dubai fruit market

    Aren’t they gorgeous?

    So when I spotted some pomegranates on sale this week I decided to make a dish I’ve been meaning to make for a while: Lamb with Pomegranates, Mint and Broad Beans on a Bed of Couscous.

    DSC_9633

    One of my old Nigella Lawson cookbooks contains a recipe for shredded lamb with pomegranate and mint. Taking this intriguing combination as a starting point, I added some fresh broad beans, pine nuts and couscous to make a colourful, one-dish meal.

    DSC_9634

    Broad beans are wonderful just now, and they lend such a lovely texture and flavour to this dish. If you’ve never cooked fresh broad beans before, it’s really simple. You just shell the broad beans, place them in boiling water for 3 minutes, refresh them in cold water and then slip the skins off the individual beans.

    DSC_9647

    With striking red and green tones this dish looks so cheerful and festive. Actually, Christmas is only eight weeks away. Yikes! How on earth did that happen?

    DSC_9637

    Lamb with Pomegranate, Mint and Broad Beans on a Bed of Couscous

    INGREDIENTS

    • 1 kg lamb (I used a 1/2 leg with bone in)
    • 1 tablespoon olive oil
    • Salt and pepper to taste
    • 1 kg fresh broad beans (unshelled)
    • 3 cups water
    • 1 cup couscous
    • 1 cup water
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 2 teaspoons salt
    • 1 pomegranate
    • 30 grams toasted pine nuts
    • 6-8 sprigs mint, leaves picked
    • 1 tablespoon garlic infused extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
    • Juice of 1 lemon

    METHOD

    1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and line a baking tray with tinfoil.
    2. Rub washed and dried lamb with olive oil and then rub in salt and pepper.
    3. Roast leg until medium or well-done, depending on preferences. For medium roast for around 1 hour (30 minutes per 500 grams). For well done roast for around 1 hour 10 minutes (35 minutes per 500 grams).
    4. Whilst lamb is cooking, prepare the beans. Bring a small saucepan of water (3 cups) to the boil. While this is happening shell the beans and then place them in the boiling water for three minutes.
    5. Drain the beans from the boiling water and then refresh them with cold water. Gently remove the skins from the individual beans and set the beans aside.
    6. Make the couscous by boiling 1 cup water with 1 tablespoon oil and 2 teaspoons salt in a small saucepan. Once boiling, turn off the heat and drop 1 cup couscous in. Cover and let sit for two minutes. Turn heat back onto low and add one tablespoon butter. Cook, stirring constantly with a fork, for 3 minutes. Once done, set aside to cool.
    7. Once lamb is done, remove from over, cover with tinfoil and leave to sit for 10 minutes. Then cut or shred lamb into small pieces, put it in a covered, oven-proof container and keep warm.
    8. To make dressing whisk garlic oil with lemon juice.
    9. To assemble, on a large plate or platter spread a layer of couscous. Top with lamb (lamb should be warm so reheat if necessary), broad beans and pomegranate seeds (arils) and garnish with pine nuts and mint. Sprinkle over dressing and then toss to combine at the table.

    Recipes with Lamb, Pomegranate or Broad Beans

    Recipes Inspired by Dubai

    Dubai posts

    Subscribe to The Hungry Australian

    Don’t want to miss a post? Sign up to receive new posts 2-3 times a week – it’s FREE!!

  • Blood Orange and Pomegranate Salad

    Each time before I go food shopping I write out a list – it’s the only way I can possibly remember what I’ve run out of and what I need to buy for client and blog projects. 50% of the time I end up leaving this list at home so I end up wandering the market muttering to myself as I try to remember all the things I wrote down.

    However my shopping list is merely the starting point. By the time I arrive home I have approximately double the things I had on my list having been seduced by some luscious looking produce during my shopping expedition.

    photo-55

    Today I was in my local greengrocers when I spotted some blood oranges and pomegranates that begged me to take them home. So I did.

    I had to take a vegetable dish to dinner at my parent’s house tonight so I took the pomegranates and blood oranges and turned them into this simple salad, enhancing the the sweetness and tartness of the pomegranates with a simple balsamic vinegar and honey dressing. We ate this salad tonight with a tomato pasta and roast meat but it would go brilliantly with grilled lamb, falafel or a seafood pasta, too.

    I’ll have to remember that next time I go shopping. Or not, as the case may be. Sometimes spontaneity can be a beautiful thing.

    photo-57

    INGREDIENTS

    • 1 x 120 gram mixed lettuce leaves
    • 3 blood oranges, peeled and sliced
    • Seeds from 1 pomegranate
    • 1 shallot, chopped into small pieces
    • 2 tablespoons EVOO
    • 1 teaspoon top quality red wine vinegar
    • 1/2 teaspoon honey
    • Salt & pepper to taste

    METHOD

    • Arrange lettuce, orange, pomegranate and shallots on a plate.
    • Make a dressing by whisking the EVOO, vinegar, honey & salt and pepper and drizzle over the top.
    • Serve immediately.

     

    ** Looking for another blood orange recipe? Check out my Blood Oranges with Dark Chocolate and Sea Salt Flakes. **