Ingredients
| 1 teaspoon black peppercorns | |
| 2 cloves | |
| ½ teaspoon fennel seeds | |
| 2 teaspoons cumin seeds | |
| ½ cinnamon stick, crushed | |
| 2 teaspoons sweet paprika | |
| 500g boneless leg of lamb | |
| 3 cloves garlic, crushed | |
| zest and juice of 1 lemon | |
| 3 tablespoons liquid honey (I used J. Friend and Co beechwood honeydew) | |
| 3 tablespoons olive oil | |
| 2 small or 1 large eggplant | |
| ¼ cup plain yoghurt | |
| 1 tablespoon tahini | |
| 1 small red onion, finely sliced | |
| ½ cup flat-leafed parsley leaves | |
| ½ cup coriander leaves | |
| ¼ cup mint leaves, torn | |
| 1 teaspoon sumac | |
| flatbread, to serve |
Honey is a natural match with spiced foods (and not necessarily hot spicy) as it balances well with those warming spices you associate with eastern Mediterranean, Persian and Middle Eastern food – flavours such as cumin, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom. You want a runny honey here, so you can drizzle it liberally over the finished dish. I always have a container of J. Friend and Co beechwood honeydew honey in my pantry as it is so versatile: it’s great in savoury dishes, squeezed over feta or grilled haloumi and in dressings, and equally as good in sweet dishes.
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Instructions
| 1. | Put the peppercorns, cloves, fennel seeds, cumin and cinnamon in a frying pan and dry fry over a medium-high heat for a minute until smelling toasted. |
| 2. | Transfer to a mortar and pestle or spice grinder and grind to a powder then stir in the paprika. |
| 3. | Cut the lamb into cubes of 1cm or less, discarding any big pieces of sinew or fat. |
| 4. | Toss with the spices, garlic, lemon zest and 1 tablespoon each of honey and oil. |
| 5. | Set aside for 30 minutes or cover and refrigerate overnight. |
| 6. | Place the eggplant directly over the flame on a preheated barbecue or on a wire rack over the burner of a gas stove. |
| 7. | Cook for about 20 minutes, turning occasionally, until very soft. |
| 8. | Remove and place in a bowl, cover and leave for 10 minutes. |
| 9. | Peel off all the skin and discard along with the stalk and any eggplant that isn’t soft (scrape with the back of a knife to get all the flesh off the skin). |
| 10. | Place in a food processor with the yoghurt, juice of half the lemon and the tahini. |
| 11. | Process to a creamy paste then season to taste with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until needed. |
| 12. | Put the onion in a bowl, cover with water and set aside for 15 minutes then drain well and toss with the parsley, coriander and mint and set aside. |
| 13. | Season the lamb well with salt. Heat one tablespoon of the remaining oil in a wok over a high heat, add half the lamb in a single layer and leave for a minute to sear then stir-fry for about 3 minutes until cooked. |
| 14. | Remove to a plate and cook the remaining lamb with the remaining oil. |
| 15. | Spread the eggplant over a serving plate and top with the lamb then drizzle with the remaining honey and juice of half the lemon. |
| 16. | Top with the herb and onion mixture and sprinkle with sumac. Serve with flatbread. |
Recipes & food styling Fiona Smith / Photography Aaron McLean / Styling Fiona Lascelles