About Me

Vivica Menegaz

Nutritionist, Author, & Blogger

Hi I am Vivica, welcome to my blog! I am a certified nutritionist and the creator of the Healing Foods Method. My philosophy of healing is to let the right foods delight you, nourish you and make you healthy!

Moroccan Stew With Beef Heart, Apricots Spices, And Lemons.

Moroccan Heart Stew Front View

A delicious Moroccan stew with a secret ingredient!

Nowadays most people make disgusted expressions when you mention easting organ meats.

What if you loved what you are eating and could never even tell you are eating offal?

This Moroccan stew with beef heart accomplishes just that.  No more YUCK and BLAH.

Instead imagine complex, fragrant tones of cinnamon and cardamom, complemented by a clear sharp note of lemon. The whole is brought to heavenly quality by the subtle sweetness of apricots, who blend with the onions in the broth to create a smooth and creamy sauce.

Vivica’s cooking TIP:

If you want your spices to be fresh and have the best flavor, it makes a big difference when you grind them yourself in a coffee grinder.

Spices are very high in many medicinal and antioxidant proprieties, but the ones you get a the regular grocery store are often irradiated, which removes most health benefits. Buying organic spices will be a little pricier, but you will be sure to get the best possible quality!

Here is a list of good options for whole spices you can very easily grind in your coffee grinder right before cooking;

“Eat what you want to heal”

I am a Certified Technician in Whole Food Nutrition.  Basically I teach people how to attain better health through whole foods, especially traditional foods. That is why organ meats are so important for me! The main problem with organ meats though, is that more people are squeamish about eating them, especially when they remember too well some awful experience with a poorly prepared dish.

Now that you know this Moroccan stew will be delicious, you should know why you do want to include the beef heart in the preparation:

WHY you should be eating organ meats:

  • Nutritional value

Heart is a muscle, so it compares to other muscle cuts of beef, although with a higher protein and nutrient content.  Beef heart contains all essential amino acids, zinc, selenium and phosphorus. It has more than double the elastin and collagen than other cuts of meat and a highly concentrated source of coenzyme Q10, also known as CoQ10.

Pastured, grass fed and finished beef is to be preferred at all times, not only for humane and environmental concerns but also because of the much higher Omega 3 content.

  • The X Factor

Weston A. Price, author of “Nutrition and Physical Degeneration,” hypothesized that a fat soluble vitamin acting as a catalyst for the absorption of vitamins is present in organ meats. More powerful than vitamins A or D, Price called this vitamin “Activator X.” In his study of indigenous food cultures, he found that every group had some food it considered sacred. He noted that all hunter-gatherer tribes ate the organ meat of any game killed first, and often raw.

  • Coenzyme Q10

Beef heart is a rich source of Coenzyme Q10, known as CoQ10. According to the university of Maryland Medical Center, CoQ10 boosts your energy level, is vital for your immune system and works as an antioxidant — fighting free radicals that damage DNA.
CoQ10 may also prevent blood clot formation, lower blood pressure, reduce fluid in the lungs and swelling in the legs — making it an important aid in preventing heart disease and heart failure.

Moroccan Heart Stew Ingredients

4.3 from 7 reviews
Moroccan Heart Stew: Beef muscle and heart meat slowly cooked with spices, lemons and apricots.
 
Author: 
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Moroccan
Imagine complex, fragrant tones of cinnamon and cardamom, complemented by a clear sharp note of lemon. The whole is brought to heavenly quality by the subtle sweetness of apricots, who blend with the onions in the broth to create a smooth and creamy sauce.
Ingredients
  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground cayenne
  • ½ teaspoon ground clove
  • 2 pounds pastured, grass finished beef heart meat (could also be lamb or turkey hearts) cut in inch cubes
  • 1 pound pastured, grass finished beef stew meat
  • 2 tablespoons ghee or schmalz or lard
  • 3 cups sliced onion
  • 2 tablespoons peeled, chopped fresh ginger
  • 2 cups water or bone broth
  • 1½ cup dried unsulfured apricots, quartered
  • 1 organic lemon cut in rounds
  • unrefined sea salt to taste
Instructions
  1. The Night before:
  2. Marinate heart meat (whole or cubed) in ½ cup of whey or 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar.
  3. On the same day:
  4. Heat fat in a dutch oven or heavy bottom casserole, add the onion/ ginger mix and saute’ on a low flame till onion is transparent.
  5. On the side brown all the meat in a large skillet on a high flame, dividing it into small batches so that it just quickly sears the surface.
  6. Mix the spices together and add to the onions. Stir well for ⅔ minutes.
  7. Now add the meat to the onion mix, and stir well to coat with the spices.
  8. In the meantime deglaze the skillet with a cup of water/broth, scraping all the nice brown bits from the bottom.
  9. Now pour the deglazing liquid on top of the meat, add the second cup of broth, the sliced lemon and a good pinch of salt.
  10. Bring to a boil, then lower flame to a simmer and cook for about 1.5 hours, until heart is very tender.
  11. Add apricots to pot and simmer uncovered for about 10 min, until liquid is thickened and reduced.
  12. Serve with rice pilaf and a salad.

 

Moroccan Heart Stew Closeup2

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Comments 25

  1. Kim Riecken says:

    Vivica,
    Is it possible to make the Moroccan heart stew in the crockpot? If so, anything different?
    Thanks, Kim

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Kim,
      I am sure you can. What I would probably do is sear the meat in a skillet before adding it with all the ingredients to the crockpot. Make sure there is enough liquid for the time of cooking.

  2. Gaily says:

    I’ve been searching high and low for recipes for GROUND beef heart, without success. As with any ground
    beef perhaps (burger, meatloaf, meatballs?) but cook more slowly, with more spices? Yes? No? Help! Thanks.

  3. Jennifer Lissette says:

    I made this for my family with a few small changes. I used only 1 pound of heart because that’s all I had, and I left out the cayenne because my middle son is sensitive to spiciness. I also browned the meat in the same dutch oven that I simmered everything in because I hate washing dishes, heh.

    Anyway, it came out delicious. My picky 5 year old really liked it and my 3 year old had 3 servings. My husband wants to take it for lunch tomorrow and my 3 year old is pretty ticked off about it. Thank you for this recipe! This is definitely how I will prepare future hearts that come in my beef shares.

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      SUCCESS!!! YAY! So happy to hear that! I am so pleased when my recipes get kids approved!! 🙂

  4. nadia says:

    i couldnt help myself to comment …. THIS NOT MOROCCAN.. the spices you used we moroccan doooonnnnt use them.
    so thats not moroccan. and thx

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Dear Nadia
      I am sorry to have used the name “Moroccan” in conjunction with a non authentic recipe.
      You have to understand that here in the US those kind flavor is what is expected for a Moroccan dish. I have several authentic Moroccan cookbooks, and even though this is not a typical dish the flavors do resemble the ones used in Moroccan cusine.
      Maybe I should have called the recipe “Moroccan Style” but that is almost implied and I am not from there and we are not there either, as I live int eh United States.
      Thank you for understanding!

  5. Julia H says:

    This was absolutely delicious. I don’t care if the title says it is Moroccan but a Moroccan person says it isn’t Moroccan…..I don’t care what it is called….I rate recipes on the basis of flavor and in my opinion this was delicious. We didn’t have stew meat on hand so we substituted some ground beef to keep the meatiness, and it seems like it kind of thickened up the sauce as the ground beef bits kind of melded with the apricots, and we served it over rice. The bright lemon pieces were great – we were fortunate to have a ripe Meyer lemon from our tree so we used that and it was wonderful with the aromatic spices. We will definitely make this again!

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Thank you Julia! I am very happy you liked it!

  6. Erin Bliss Thompson says:

    Hello, I’m interested in making this recipe but am wondering when/where the second cup of water/broth comes into play. The ingredients list calls for 2 cups but the instructions only accounts for one … used to deglaze the pan the meat was seared in and then poured over the onion/ginger/spice/beef mixture. Does the second cup just get added to the pot before the 90 minute simmer? Thank you for the additional info! Cheers – Erin

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Sorry the second cup goes in when you add the other liquid to the pot. I updated the recipe 🙂

  7. Kelly says:

    This was so yummy! The flavors are awesome! I’ve had a beef heart in my freezer for over a year because I’ve been to afraid to try it. This was the perfect recipe to introduce myself (and hubby) to beef heart. I love that it’s mixed with stew beef to make it seem more “normal”. Thanks so much!!

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Yay Kelly! I love organ meat success stories 😉 Thank you for being brave!

  8. Teresa says:

    Does the beef heart need to be marinated OVERNIGHT? I’ll probably only be able to marinate it for an hour at the most and I want to know if the ACV overnight marinade is crucial for the beef heart taste/texture.

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Sure, even an hour is better than nothing! 🙂

  9. Baron says:

    Do you want to simmer it covered or uncovered? Thank you!

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Depends on how much liquid you have and how much do you want left….you can start covered and then see it from there..

  10. Katia Suttile says:

    I made this recipe yesterday after looking up and not finding too many beef heart recipe options that looked interesting. This was delicious. I usually don’t follow recipes exactly as they are written but I did in this case since it was my first time cooking with heart. We really enjoyed the flavors. I don’t know when I will have access to a beef heart again but I may make this sauce with other cuts of meat. Thank you for the recipe.

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      You are so welcome Katia!! I am glad to see that you can now enjoy more organ meats!!!

  11. Maria S. says:

    This was EXCEPTIONAL. I didn’t have cloves, so I subbed them out for the same amount of nutmeg, and used 3 big shallots instead of 3 cups of onions. I also didn’t know if i was supposed to keep the peel on all the lemon, so i took the peel off most of the slices and threw in just one or two with it. Are you supposed to keep the whole peel on?

    Anyways, thank you so much for this amazing burst of flavour. This is pinned to my favorite recipes board now, and I will be making it all winter long.

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Yeah Maria!!! So happy somebody likes my recipes…especially the organ meats 😀

  12. Erin says:

    This was an excellent recipe! I didn’t have lemon on hand so I used lime. I imagine the lemon would taste even better but had to go with what I had on hand in a pinch. For the extra stew beef I used some leftover beef tongue. All this worked! I’ve had tongue a few times now and this has been my intro to heart. I’m amazed people haven’t caught on to these cuts of meat, they’re so affordable and rather tasty!
    Thank you for this recipe! I’ll probably return to it.

    • The Nourished Caveman says:

      Erin I love your creativity with this recipe! That’s what it’s all about!! Play with it! Make it your own!! Thank you so much for trying it.

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