Why? Well, the ethnicity of the cuisine does call for them and it's worth an experiment every now and again.
... or, I don't know. I just did.
Aside from the chick peas, this is a perfectly good paleo Lamb Stew, so let's enjoy it for what it is.
Get a load of lamb pieces, on and off the bone, into the oven in a large lidded dish with chopped onion, garlic, ground cumin, ground coriander, black pepper, sea salt, topped off with water and a couple of bay leaves. Set the oven to low (say, 125C) and leave it in there all day.
The slow-cooking will give you really tender lamb as well as breaking down all the sinews and releasing the marrow from the bones. The onions will have almost completely disappeared while the garlic and the spices will have matured giving a really heady stew. That, in itself, is a perfectly good meal.
Maybe an hour from when you want to eat, add in some shredded savoy cabbage, cubed sweet potato, soaked chick peas and a couple of shredded chillies.
Serve out into wide-brimmed bowls and garnish with fresh coriander.
Warming, deep and sumptuous.
In hindsight, I would have preferred to have left the chick peas out. They really didn't add anything to what was otherwise a perfectly paleo stew.
n=1
Wind ... 'nuff said.
