Moroccan Beef Stew

Step 1

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. When the oil is very hot (but not smoking), add the beef. Cook the beef until it is well browned and all of the juices have cooked off (about 15 minutes).

Step 2

While the beef is cooking, dice the onion. Peel the ginger with a vegetable peeler or scrape the skin off with a spoon and then grate about 2 inches on a cheese grater. Add the onion, ginger, and minced garlic to the pot with the beef and cook until tender (about 5 minutes).

Step 3

Add the allspice and cinnamon to the pot. Stir and cook for about one minute. Add the red wine to deglaze the bottom of the pot. If you’re not using wine, the water in the next step will do the same.

Step 4

Add the water, the tomato paste, honey, crushed red pepper, and salt. Give everything a good stir to dissolve the tomato paste. Let it come up to a boil then reduce the heat to low, place a lid on top, and let it simmer for one hour.

Step 5

While the stew is simmering, cook the jasmine rice. Add the dry rice and 3 cups of water to a medium pot. Bring it up to a boil with a lid in place. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and let simmer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, turn the heat off and let the pot sit, undisturbed, until you are ready to serve.

Step 6

When the stew has simmered for about an hour, roughly chop the apricots and add them to the stew along with the raisins. Let the stew simmer for another 15-20 minutes without a lid to allow it to thicken. You may need to increase the heat just slightly to keep it simmering without the lid to hold the heat in.

Step 7

Fluff the rice with a fork, pile some into a bowl, and then ladle the stew on top. Enjoy!