Mediterranean Lamb Tacos

I took the first bite of my lamb taco the other night and said to Xavier, “This is one of the best things that I’ve ever made.”

Then, I ate three of them.
I was going to make a little salsa of roasted tomatoes and basil, but I didn’t make it to the store. My avocados were about two days short of being ripe, so that didn’t work out, either.

But it mattered not, since these tacos needed little more than a homemade tortilla – which I happily rolled out that afternoon — a bit of goat cheese and a squeeze of lime.

Rick Bayless told me recently that it’s harder to cook with less ingredients, because one wrong move, and you’re in trouble.

So what, you may be asking, is so special about these lamb tacos?

Hmmm. It may be the bottle of burgundy. The whole cloves of garlic. The cinnamon. The cloves. All of which made their way into the chunks of lamb, that over six hours, fell apart, brisket-like, with a soft touch of the back of a wooden spoon.

I knew not to eat it that day, or the day after that, even. Two days after I made the lamb, it was ready. Ready for soft wheat tortillas, and not much else.

They would be great as quesadillas, too. Maybe even nachos.

Have fun with this. Invite your friends over. Ice down those Coronas, and crank up the tunes.

Mediterranean Lamb Tacos

2 pounds lamb shoulder, cut in three and four-inch chunks
2-16 oz cans of diced tomatoes + juice (fire-roasted are best)
1 medium onion, diced
4-5 cloves garlic, skins removed, but left whole
⅔ bottle red wine
4-5 cups water
1 teaspoon cinnamon
5 whole cloves

1. Rinse, pat lamb pieces dry with paper towel and liberally salt and pepper each piece. Place in the bottom of a slow cooker.

2. Add chopped onion, whole garlic cloves, tomatoes, spices, and wine. Add enough water so the lamb is covered by 3 inches of liquid.

3. Cover and turn on high for 6 hours.

4. Serve with homemade tortillas.