Full question
The recipe published on the website for the Aromatic Lamb Stew states ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes and 2 teaspoons cinnamon. Is this correct or is it meant to be the other way around? When watching Nigella cook this dish on TV she specifically states not too much cinnamon as it will make the dish taste like apple pie, and adds around ¼ tsp. Hoswever, Nigella seems to add far more than ¼ tsp chilli flakes as she says she likes it very hot. So I am just questioning if the correct quantities are listed for both ingredients, as the recipe and TV show seem a bit different.
Our answer
Nigella's Aromatic Lamb Shank Stew (from NIGELLA BITES) is an Asian-inspired dish that can be made in advance and reheated, and in fact usually tastes better when reheated. The spices include cinnamon and chilli flakes (crushed red pepper flakes), along with turmeric, nutmeg and ginger.
The quantities listed in the recipe on Nigella.com are the ones that are tested and correct - i.e. 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon and ¼ teaspoon chilli flakes. When making the TV shows there tends to be quite a lot of retakes and editing, so the quantities shown on the series don't always correspond exactly to those in the actual recipe and Nigella doesn't state the quantities in the show. However, you can tweak the spice quantities to your own personal taste and certainly add more chilli flakes if you want more heat.
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