Socca with Lamb and Vegetable
Every country seems to have its own riff on a pancake or crêpe, stuffed with an array of sweet or savory fillings. Crêpes might be synonymous with France, but this class focuses on three different international variations. Southern Francecis known for its popular street food crêpe known as socca. Here, Shawnie shared her award-winning chickpea flour crêpe filled with a rich, flavorful lamb and vegetables filling. The class then moves toward southern India for a soft, crispy crêpe popular known as dosa, filled with curried potatoes and peas. The third global crêpe is the popular Vietnamese street food, Bánh Xèo – a crispy rice flour pancake filled with shrimp and vegetables.
Socca with Lamb and Vegetable
France and North Africa come together in this one pot wonder of slow-cooked lamb and vegetables- typically made in a traditional cone-shaped clay tagine cooker. Provençal ingredients marry beautifully with an aromatic broth scented with Moroccan spices. It’s all about building a flavorful stew that pairs perfectly with the chickpea flour crêpe. This crêpe is more like a flatbread that can be folded, but not easily rolled since the chickpea flour is gluten free. In 2017, Shawnie won the National Association of Food bloggers annual culinary competition with this recipe.
- Serves
- 6
Directions
-
For the Tagine (or Dutch oven)
-
Season the lamb cubes with a pinch of salt and a teaspoon of North African spices
-
Build the broth: Add the broth to the tagine and heat over lowest stovetop until broth begins to warm up.
-
When warmed, add saffron threads and African spices. Stir to dissolve and simmer on low for five minutes.
-
Blend the honey into the tagine broth. In two additions, mix in preserved lemon peel, tasting, being sure not to over-salt Keep in mind, the olives will lend salt too. Cover and let simmer broth on low heat while preparing the remaining ingredients.
-
In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium and brown the lamb cubes on all sides. 2-3 minutes.
-
Add onions, carrots, and cauliflower and cook for 3 minutes; then add garlic and cook for another minute. The vegetables will still be al dente at this point.
-
Stir the onion-vegetable mixture into the tagine broth. Add the raisins, olives, and chickpeas, stirring well.
-
Add the lamb to the tagine, cover with lid and turn heat up to medium-low.
-
Cover and cook for about an hour.
-
Try not to lift the lid too much, as it needs to retain the heat and moisture for slow-cooking.
-
When vegetables are fork-tender, completely stir the stew, making sure everything is combined.
-
Place one socca on each plate and using a slotted spoon, scoop some of the lamb stew onto the crêpe.
-
Drizzle a little of the broth over top. Serve garnished with cilantro.
-
Make the Socca: Preheat the oven to 450F
-
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, water, salt, and 2 tablespoons of oil
-
Batter will be thick, but pourable.
-
Pour the remaining oil into a 9-10-inch cast iron skillet and brush evenly to distribute.
-
Oil should generously coat the bottom of the pan. Place skillet in the oven for 5 minutes.
-
Carefully remove hot pan from oven. Pour the batter into pan, swirling evenly to distribute the batter.
-
Return to oven and bake for 25-30 minutes. Do not flip.
-
Remove socca from oven when it is deep golden brown with some burnt bits.
-
Cut into 6 wedges for serving and place one on each plate.
-
Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle generously with black pepper.
From Shawnie's class “Global Crepes”
