Morrocan vegetable stew

This delicious vegetable stew is inspired by a fantastic meal at a restaurant on Old Brompton Road in London, 'Cous Cous Darma'. We had it served with pan fried sea bass fillets and a mixed grill. It was described as a 'lovely vegetable stew to moisten the cous cous'. It was. I served it with a shoulder of lamb smothered in Ras-el-hanout (a Moroccan spice mix), roasted with whole garlic. The flavour was very close to the version we had in London and the perfect match to any roast meat or fish or just on it's own with cous cous. i always used 'easy' cous cous made with butter and chicken stock.

Ingredients
(serves 4)

• 1 red onion (chopped)
• 2 cloves of garlic (crushed)
• 1 hot green chilli
• a few potatoes (cut into about 1 inch pieces)
• 1 courgette (cored and chopped into 1 inch pieces)
• 1 carrot (as above)
• 1 green pepper (as above)
• 2 tomatoes (as above)
• about a pint and a half of chicken or vegetable stock
• a few black olives
• the rind from 1 preserved lemon (sliced quite finely)
• 2 tsps ground cumin
• 2 tsps sweet paprika
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon 
• 1 pinch of saffron
• a bunch of coriander (chopped)
• 1 bay leaf
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

1. sweat the onion and garlic before adding the vegetables for a further 5 minutes, on a low heat with the spices (except saffron)
2. add the stock, saffron and bay leaf
3. simmer for about 40 minutes or so, until the potatoes are softish
4. add the olives and tomatoes
5. simmer for a further 5 minutes
6. then it can be turned off and left to be reheated or throw in the coriander and serve

What I couldn't recreate was the amazingly dry, crisp Moroccan rose wine that we were served with the meal at Cous Cous Darma.