Cinnamon Beef Tagine

Annacia's Note:

Long, slow cooking brings out the layered flavors of North African spices, such as cinnamon, bay leaf, cumin, ginger and red pepper, in this Moroccan stew.

• Total Time: 1 hrs 45 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 1 hrs 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 1 ½ lbs top sirloin steaks or 1 ½ lbs top round beef , cut in 3/4-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil , divided
• 1 (14 ½ ounce) can chicken broth , fat free
• 1 medium onion , cut into small wedges
• 2 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• 1⁄8; teaspoon cayenne
• 1 bay leaf
• 8 cups assorted cut-up vegetables , such as butternut squash, sweet potatoes, red bell peppers
• ½ cup raisins

Directions:

1. Coat beef cubes with flour.
2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large saucepan or Dutch oven.
3. Add half of the beef; cook 10 minutes or until brown.
4. Remove from pan.
5. Repeat with remaining beef and oil.
6. Return all beef to pan.
7. Stir in broth, onion and all spices.
8. Bring to boil.
9. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer 90 minutes, you may add more liquid as/if needed.
10. Add vegetables.
11. Cover and simmer 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
12. Stir in raisins.
13. Serve with couscous, if desired.

Reviews

[Karen67]

Both my guest and I thought that this was a lot like stew, and though it was fine, it also didn't strike either of us as anything special. I expected the cinnamon & cumin flavor to be much stronger, and was a bit disappointed that the flavors weren't more pronounced. I followed the recipe pretty closely, using 1 lb of stew meat, homemade veggie broth and 4 cups of veggies (carrots, sweet potatoes & mushrooms), but left all of the spices as listed. I did leave out the raisins because I just don't like them. This was definitely an easy meal, and would probably be a big hit with those that like beef stew. I'd suggest serving it over rice or noodles.

[Diana #2]

I didn't think it would be fair to post any stars, as I'm not really sure how I feel about it. It's not a *bad* recipe at all, it's just *different*....for us. I've never had a Moroccan dish before, or used cumin, and I'm not really sure how I feel about it. The house smelled wonderful while it was cooking, and the meat was extremely tender. However, we found the cumin to be a little overpowering, and I'm not quite sure I like the cinnamon with the meat. I will probably try it again, but reduce those particular spices some. Thanks for posting Annacia. It's always good to get out of our comfort zones.