Mrouzia | Moroccan Lamb with Honey, Raisins, and Almonds

Finely chop the onions and cook them in the butter and oil over medium heat for 8 minutes, until softened and golden at the edges. Add the patted-dry lamb and turn it until browned on all sides; wet meat will steam rather than brown.

Add the ras el hanout, turmeric, black pepper, and saffron crushed in a mortar. Stir for 1 minute. Dry spices bloom in oil; added directly to water, they remain raw and dusty. Add the cinnamon stick at this stage too.

Add the water and salt and bring to a boil. Skim off the foam and reduce the heat to low. Cook partially covered until the meat is tender enough to pull from the bone. Leave about two 200 ml measures of liquid in the pot; if it reduces too soon, add boiling water.

Blanch the almonds in boiling water for 2 minutes and remove their skins. Toast them with the sesame seeds in a dry skillet until golden. Remove them from the pan immediately; almonds left in the skillet will darken and turn bitter from the residual heat.

Add the drained raisins, ground cinnamon, and ½ of a 200 ml measure of the soaking water. Cook for 15 minutes. Stir in the honey and cook uncovered for 10 more minutes, until the sauce becomes a thick glaze that coats the back of a spoon. Do not boil the honey for longer.

Remove the cinnamon stick. Stir in the orange blossom water after taking the pot off the heat; its aroma evaporates with heat, so do not boil it. Transfer the meat to a wide serving dish, pour the sauce over it, and sprinkle with the toasted almonds and sesame seeds. Serve with plain bread; the sauce is sweet, so rice is unnecessary.