Lamb with apricots and sweet potatoes

This recipe comes from an Icelandic website of lamb recipes. It appears to be of Middle-Eastern or North-African extraction. I have never had success in cooking sweet potatoes, but this looks fool-proof, and it has lamb, which is my favourite meat.

Serves 4.

800 g lamb, fat trimmed off and cut into bite-size cubes
3 tbs flour
Freshly ground pepper
salt
4 tbs olive oil
2 onions, chopped
2-3 celery stalks, chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 tsp coriander seeds, ground
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp chili-pepper, or to taste
2 bay leaves
150 g apricots (presumably dried)
water
800 g sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
Some parsley, chopped

Mix together flour, pepper and salt and coat the cubed meat in it (put everything together in a plastic bag and shake).

Heat the oil in a large thick-bottomed pot and sautée the meat at high temperature until browned. Remove and set aside.

Lower the temperature to medium and put the onions, celery and garlic in the pot and let simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the spices and simmer for 2-3 minutes more. Return the meat to the pot, add the bay leaves and apricots with enough water to barely cover the contents of the pot. Bring to the boil and simmer slowly, covered, for about 40 minutes.

Add the sweet potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes more.

Taste the gravy and adjust flavour as needed. If it is very thin, remove the lid and turn up the temperature for a few minutes at the end to reduce and thicken the sauce.

Garnish with chopped parsley.

Good served with couscous.