Lamb Ragu with Harissa

I can honestly say I had never cooked with Harissa before this recipe! It is a North African chile paste, and is spicy and delicious. It has warmer, earthier spices than the Asian garlic chile paste that I’m more familiar with. My local Aldi was having a special on ground lamb, and I had been craving pasta for a while, so this recipe really hit the spot. Letting it cook in the slow cooker all day really let the flavors marinate together, plus it made my house smell amazing and exotic!

Sauce Ingredients
1 can diced tomatoes (14.5 ounces)
1 jar roasted red peppers in water, drained (12 ounces)
1 tbsp. olive oil
15 ounces ground lamb
Salt and pepper (About ½ teaspoon each)
1 large onion, chopped
1 stalk of celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbsp. harissa paste
1 teaspoon each of coriander, cumin, and paprika
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper (omit if you don’t like it very spicy – the harissa is already spicy!)

Pasta Ingredients
16 ounces pasta of your choice
Salt
2 green onions, sliced for garnis
2 tbsp. fresh mint, chopped, for garnish
Freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese for serving

First, to make the sauce puree the tomatoes and roasted peppers in a blender.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat, add in olive oil and lamb, season with salt and pepper, and cook until the meat is browned, about 3-4 minutes. Then add in the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic, and cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are cooked and softened. Then, add in the seasonings – the Harissa, coriander, cumin, and paprika, and cook for another minute, until everything gets well mixed together.

Then add all of this to your slow cooker along with the tomato-pepper sauce that you made in your blender and the pepper flakes. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours.

Cook your pasta the usual way in salted water, until al dente. Add your cooked pasta to your slow cooker and mix well.

Serve the pasta with the green onions and mint, top with some cheese if you want.

WOW. A really company-worthy dish. It takes some time, so I’ll make it again on a weekend, but so worth it. One of the best things I’ve made in a while!