Agnello con Cuscus del Nord Africa

Agnello con Cuscus del Nord Africa
Lamb with couscous from North Africa, a succulent dish I can never forget ever since my Peace Corps days back in the early 1970s. I served in Libreville, Gabon, as a teacher of English as a second language. My closest friends while I was there were three Senegalese: Roquayya, her brother Abbesolo, and his wife Binta. They lived next door to me, and I often broke bread with them at lunchtime. Roquayya was an exceptional cook.
We all ate from a main large platter; it was a ritual – first we would wash our hands with a very hot cloth with the scent of fresh lemons, crouched around a low-lying table surrounded by plush multi-colored pillows. Then Roquayya would serve the food – I will never forget her Moroccan couscous with lamb – the aroma alone would put you into food nirvana. She loved Moroccan food and was very skilled in preparing many specialties from that area of Africa.
Ordinarily this dish would be highly spiced, but she omitted the piment (a very hot pepper – like a habanera) for my benefit. If you like heat, don’t let me stop you! After the meal we would have Wolof tea served in three rounds: the first is bitter (no sugar), the second has a little sugar, and the last is the sweetest. The ritual mirrors the development of friendship – as time goes on you get to know people better as you spend quality time with them.
According to my mother Gilda, my granddad Santo spent a lot of quality time in his travels, especially through North Africa. Santo served as an officer in the Italian carabiniere, an elite police force of the Italian republic. He served in Libya when it was an Italian colony and had opportunities to travel to other nearby countries. He was particularly fond of couscous. Gilda said that Adelina, his wife, would often prepare couscous dishes for him. Undoubtedly I think he would have enjoyed Roquayya’s lamb with couscous, too.
Ingredients for 4:
1 small onion, peeled and sliced

Olive oil for frying (does not need to be extra-virgin)

1 lb leg of lamb, diced into small pieces

1 garlic toe, peeled and crushed

1 sweet red pepper, diced

1 T tomato puree

15 oz of canned San Marzano tomatoes

13 -14 fluid oz of water

2 sprigs of fresh basil, shredded

Sea salt

For the couscous:

4½ oz couscous

About 5 fluid oz vegetable stock
Preparation:

Heat a large saucepan and gently fry the onion in a little olive oil for 10 minutes. Add the diced lamb, the garlic, red pepper and tomato puree. Stir in the San Marzano tomatoes, water and basil. Add salt to taste; cover with a lid or a couple of tight layers of foil, then simmer on a low flame for around 1½ hours, or alternatively transfer into a deep baking pan. Cover with foil and finish cooking it in the oven at 300º F for about 2 hours, or until the meat is tender.Tip the dry couscous into a serving bowl. Then pour the boiling vegetable stock onto the couscous - it should just cover it. Leave to stand for 10 minutes, and then fluff up with a fork just before serving. Serve the lamb with couscous and a mixed leaf salad as a side.
Buon appetito!
Note: When I made this for Wally, I used chicken pieces instead of the lamb – it works well for both. Although I haven’t tried it with beef, you may want to experiment and see.