1 lb stewing beef, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp dried cumin
2 tsp dried coriander
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/2 tsp tumeric
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted
Zest of lemon
2-3 tbsp chopped fresh mint
In a bowl, toss the beef with a couple tablespoons of flour to coat. In a large pot, heat a tablespooon of oil over medium-high heat. When the pot is hot, add half of the beef. Don't add all the beef or the heat will drop too much and you won't get a nice brown coating on the meat. Saute for a couple minutes until the beef is nice and browned on all sides. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon. You may need to add another tablespoon of oil and then add the rest of the beef. Cook until browned and then add to the rest of the beef that has been removed from the pan. Add just a touch more oil to the pan, turn the heat down to medium and add the onions and garlic to the pot. Saute about 5 minutes or so until the onions have softened. Add the cumin, coriander, tumeric and cayenne and fry about 3o seconds. Add the water, can of tomatoes and the beef and stir. Turn the heat down to low, cover and simmer for about 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
About 10 minutes before the stew is done, begin to prepare your couscous. Also in a dry pan over medium heat toast the slivered almonds. Once they have a bit of a golden color and you can smell their nuttiness, remove the pan from the heat. Add the almonds to the stew, along with the zest of the lemon. Chop up the mint and stir into stew right before serving.
Serve over couscous.
