flipLamb Shoulder with Dates and Pomegranate for the Marzeah
Lamb Shoulder with Dates and Pomegranate for the Marzeah
Why this dish? Before and after an expedition, the notables and sailors of Carthage gathered for a banquet (*marzeah*) to honor the gods and celebrate the return. A piece of meat simmered in the sweetness of dates and the acidity of pomegranate — the very emblem of Carthage — crowned these festive tables.
A lamb shoulder slowly confit with melting dates, lifted by the tart juice and ruby seeds of the pomegranate. Punic sweet-and-sour in all its splendor, perfumed with cumin and coriander.
When the fleet returns safe to port and Baal Hammon has received his due, then we set the banquet and spare no expense. We melt the lamb in the honey of dates until the flesh leaves the bone at a breath, and we crown the dish with the grains of the Punic apple — that fruit which bears the name of my city. Taste how the sour and the sweet kiss: therein lies all the wisdom of Carthage. Eat with your rowing brothers, for a solitary feast honors no god.
- •Lamb shoulder — one piece (festive meat)
- •Dates — a good handful (sweetness and juice binder)
- •Pomegranate (juice and seeds) — two fruits (acidity and garnish)
- •Cumin and coriander — to taste (spices)
- •Onion — two (base)
- •Olive oil — a drizzle (cooking)
- •Wine — a splash (moistening)
Lamb Shoulder with Dates and Pomegranate for the Marzeah
A lamb shoulder slowly confit with melting dates, lifted by the tart juice and ruby seeds of the pomegranate. Punic sweet-and-sour in all its splendor, perfumed with cumin and coriander.
Why this dish? Before and after an expedition, the notables and sailors of Carthage gathered for a banquet (*marzeah*) to honor the gods and celebrate the return. A piece of meat simmered in the sweetness of dates and the acidity of pomegranate — the very emblem of Carthage — crowned these festive tables.
When the fleet returns safe to port and Baal Hammon has received his due, then we set the banquet and spare no expense. We melt the lamb in the honey of dates until the flesh leaves the bone at a breath, and we crown the dish with the grains of the Punic apple — that fruit which bears the name of my city. Taste how the sour and the sweet kiss: therein lies all the wisdom of Carthage. Eat with your rowing brothers, for a solitary feast honors no god.
Ingredients (period version)
- Lamb shoulder — one piece (festive meat)
- Dates — a good handful (sweetness and juice binder)
- Pomegranate (juice and seeds) — two fruits (acidity and garnish)
- Cumin and coriander — to taste (spices)
- Onion — two (base)
- Olive oil — a drizzle (cooking)
- Wine — a splash (moistening)
Ingredients
- Lamb shoulder — 1.2 kg (main meat)
- Pitted dates — 150 g (sweetness)
- Pomegranate juice — 250 ml (acidity)
- Fresh pomegranate seeds — 1 fruit (finishing)
- Ground cumin — 1 tsp (spice)
- Ground coriander — 1 tsp (spice)
- Sliced onions — 2 (aromatic base)
- Olive oil — 3 tbsp (cooking)
- Red wine — 150 ml (moistening)
- Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Sear the lamb shoulder in olive oil on all sides, then set aside.
- Sweat the onions in the same pot, add cumin and coriander.
- Return the meat, deglaze with wine and pomegranate juice, add the dates and salt.
- Cover and cook on very low heat (or in the oven at 150 °C) for 2 h 30 to 3 h, basting regularly, until the meat falls off the bone.
- Strain the juices and reduce if necessary until syrupy (the dates naturally thicken it).
- Coat the meat with the sauce and generously scatter fresh pomegranate seeds before serving.
How it was made : The *marzeah* was a banquet association attested in the Phoenician-Punic world, blending feasting, remembrance of the dead, and connection to the gods. Punic cuisine loved to pair fruit sweetness (dates, raisins, figs) and acidity (pomegranate, verjuice) with meats. The pomegranate, *malum punicum*, was so linked to Carthage that its Latin name preserves the trace.
The contemporary twist : Presented as a sharing dish, shredded meat on barley flatbread, a rain of pomegranate seeds and fresh coriander leaves: a 'tajine' before the tajine.
Hanno the Navigator · Charactorium
