Za’atar Spiced Ground Lamb Bowl with Tahini

If there’s one thing I love creating (and eating) it’s bowls of all kinds. I love the variety that comes with making bowls; choose a flavour profile, a protein, carb, veggies and a sauce that ties it all together – and you’re good to go. And this lamb bowl is just that. I went with a Middle Eastern flavour profile by using za’atar, tahini and skhug and all of that together results in one delicious meal. These are great for meal prepping, lunch or dinner.

Ingredients

• quinoa
• za’atar
• extra virgin olive oil
• ground lamb
• cherry tomatoes
• cucumber
• lemon
• tahini
• garlic
• prepared pickled red onion
• prepared skhug (or other hot sauce of choice, optional, see notes in the recipe card for more info)
• fresh mint

How to Make Ground Lamb Bowls

Cook the quinoa according to package directions.

Once cooked, fluff with a fork and drizzle with the olive oil and season with za’atar and salt.

Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium heat and drizzle with oil. Once hot, add the lamb and break apart with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle in the za’atar and salt and continue cooking until browned and cooked through, about seven to ten minutes. Remove the lamb and set aside.

In a large bowl, toss together the tomatoes, cucumber, lemon, oil and season with salt and pepper.

In a large measuring cup or small bowl, pour in the tahini, followed by the water, garlic and lemon juice. Whisk very well, until combined and the tahini sauce is smooth and lightens in colour. Season with salt and pepper.

Divide the quinoa into bowls and top with lamb, tomato/cucumber mixture, pickled red onion and drizzle with skhug and tahini. Garnish with mint and enjoy!

A Note on Za’atar Spice

So what is Za’atar exactly?

It’s the name of a spice mixture that is used as a condiment. It contains herbs such as oregano, thyme and/or marjoram, sumac, toasted sesame seeds and salt. It can also contain a few other ingredients depending on the region in the Middle East.

You can find the blend at Middle Eastern grocery stores, online at Amazon, or you can make your own.

I love using it on vegetables, like in this sheet pan roasted veggies with Halloumi, air fryer chicken schnitzel or these smashed roasted radishes with za’atar.

Tips

• Prep ahead: if you want to prep things ahead of time, the quinoa, ground lamb, tahini sauce, pickled red onions and skhug can be prepped in advance. This makes assembling everything a lot easier.
• Taste and adjust: as you cook, it’s always a good idea to taste and season your food to your preference. Before adding the full amount of any ingredient, taste and then add more as needed. I provide salt amounts as a guide, but this will vary depending on your own taste preference as well as the type of salt you use. I predominately use Diamond Crystal kosher salt at home for cooking.
• Cook the lamb with some oil: lamb is leaner than other ground meats, such as beef. So a good splash of oil in the pan before you start cooking the lamb is a good idea.
• The toppings are essential: the toppings and additions really make these ground lamb bowls shine. I love the combination of a spicy skhug with the creamy garlicky tahini sauce. And having acidity from the tomato/cucumber salad is also very nice. But feel free to simplify and use your favourite hot sauce instead if you’d like.

Substitutions

• Ground lamb: use ground beef instead.
• Less spice: use less chiles in the skhug recipe, or use another type of hot sauce or omit for no heat.
• No quinoa: use another grain such as farro, orzo or rice.

Ingredients & Products I Recommend

I share these products to show you what I choose to use in my kitchen as staple ingredients I use daily (or weekly). So if you opened up my fridge (or pantry), here’s what you’ll find!

Kosher salt: I exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt for all of my recipes. I prefer the texture, taste and consistency of this brand and highly recommend it for everyday cooking.

Tahini: I recommend using a high quality tahini brand that you love the taste of. I absolutely love Soom tahini and highly recommend it.

If you make these za’atar spiced ground lamb bowls, please let me know by tagging me on Instagram, or leave a comment and/or review below!‍

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