Seemingly lamb has a bit of a reputation
for being fatty and therefore may not be a first choice for healthy eating –
what a shame and a misconception. The truth of the matter is that lamb provides
high quality zinc, iron and protein which is especially important when losing
weight as it not only curbs hunger but also speeds recovery after exercise and
reduces muscle loss. This is certainly good news after the recent binge we've all been on!
I am the happy recipient of some lovely
boneless leg of organic Welsh lamb from Rhug Estate Organic Farm and am going to make some delicious dishes
with it. Big headed or what!
I decided to cook my lamb four different ways
and eat it all myself because as luck would have it my Real Man is not one for
adventurous eating and in any case it’s my lamb!
Roast Lamb with Black Garlic
Firstly an idea I have been pondering for
some while – how lamb would taste with black garlic.
4 lovely pieces of lean lamb meat – about 200g each
6 black garlic cloves
1 teaspoon (or more!) freshly and coarsely ground black pepper
4 tablespoons olive oil
salt
~
Grind together the black garlic (which is very soft) and the black
pepper using a pestle and mortar or a bowl and teaspoon.
~ Stir in the olive oil and slather
this over the meat.
~ Cover and set aside in the fridge for
several hours.
~ Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/170ºC
fan/gas 5 and put an ovenproof dish in it.
~ Get the lamb out of the fridge.
~ When the oven is hot season the meat
with a little salt and brown on all sides in a hot pan then transfer to the
dish in the oven.
~ Roast for 15-20 minutes till to your
liking.
The meat was superb; tender, tasty and juicy. I’m afraid I then did something a
little fattening with the meat juices but you don’t have to – I set the lamb
aside in a warm place to rest (all cooked meats benefit from a rest, as do I) and
added a splash of port to the pan, simmered a minute then added a knob of
butter. It all tasted wonderful but the sauce didn’t look so good in the photo! Sorry about that!
Black garlic maybe an unfamiliar ingredient but is well worth investigating – it is sweet
and rich and reminiscent of molasses and balsamic vinegar.
My second dish was ...
Souvlaki – for 4
You need metal or wooden skewers for this
Greek dish.
750g lovely lean lamb leg meat – cut into 2½ cm/1” ish dice
5 tablespoons olive oil
the juice of one lemon
1 red onion – finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried oregano (or 1 tablespoon fresh, finely chopped, if
you have it)
freshly ground black pepper
~
Basically mix together all the ingredients except the lamb and then stir
in the lamb.
~
Cover and leave to marinate for at least 5 hours but considerably
longer, eg overnight, if you can.
~ If you are using wooden skewers soak
them in water as they are much less likely to char or catch fire that way.
~ Preheat the grill or pan.
~ Thread the lamb chunks on the skewers
and season with salt.
~ Cook for 10-12 minutes, turning
occasionally till just how you like them. A bit of char on the meat can be
pleasant!
Serve with flatbread plus Tzatziki and
Horiatiki or in other words minty cucumber and yogurt dip and Greek salad.
Thirdly out of respect to the Welshness of
the meat …
Lamb & Leek Hotpot – serves 4
400g
fresh leeks
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 crushed garlic clove
750g boneless leg of lamb – diced
another 2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 tablespoon of flour
600ml hot vegetable or lamb stock
800g potatoes
salt and pepper
a little butter - optional
~ Season the lamb and in a separate pot brown
them, a few pieces at a time, in the other two tablespoons of olive oil. Getting a good colour on the meat is
important for the flavour of the finished dish.
~ When the leeks are buttery tender
stir in the garlic and the flour over low heat a few seconds.
~ Stir in the stock, bring to the boil
stirring, turn off the heat and add the lamb to the pot.
~ Preheat the oven to 160ºC/325°F/140ºC
fan/gas 3.
~ Peel and thinly slice the potatoes.
~ Arrange half the potato slices to
cover the base of an ovenproof dish and season with a little salt and pepper.
~ Pour the lamb and its gravy over the
potatoes.
~ Top with the rest of the potato
slices and season.
~ Cover the pan tightly with foil and
bake for 2 hours although check after an hour and a half to see how it is going
and add a little more stock if it is drying out.
~ When all is tender remove the foil
(dot with a little butter if you are not being too abstemious) and return the
dish to the oven to brown the potatoes.
On second thoughts I think
my real man would like this if I left out the garlic! Perfect for the sort of
weather we are having.
And finally another warming winter dish and
one of my favourites …
Lamb Braised in Red Wine – serves 4
2-3
tablespoons olive oil
750g lean lamb leg meat – diced
1 large onion, sliced
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped
½ tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon flour
600ml red wine
a little stock
~ Heat
the oil in a large saucepan and carefully brown the meat, a few pieces at a
time so as not to overcrowd the pan, in it.
Set aside.
~ Add the onions and cook, stirring
often, till softening and just starting to take colour.
~ Stir in the garlic and cook a minute.
~ Stir in the tomato paste and cook
another minute.
~ Stir in the flour and, yes, cook
another minute.
~ Add the red wine and bring to the
boil.
~ Return the meat to the pan and if
necessary add a little stock or water to bring the liquid just to the level of
the top of the meat.
~ Cover with foil and then the lid,
turn the heat to low and simmer for a couple of hours or so till very, very, very
tender and wonderful.
~ If the sauce is a little runny for
your taste remove the lamb and set aside whilst you boil the gravy down a
little.
The meat cooked this way is rich, silky, tender, sticky and utterly delicious!
I usually do this with
lamb shanks, the long slow cooks means that any fat melts and as it cools rises
to the surface of the gravy. One chilled the fat can be lifted off before
reheating which, as these sort of dishes always taste better the day after
making, is the best thing to do. Using
the leg of lamb there was no fat on the gravy!
A Note on Welsh Lamb
Lamb is a lovely meat and Welsh Lamb is extra special; it has PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) status certifying
the integrity of the meat, that it has been traditionally reared and butchered to
a very high standard or to put it another way, is some of the best lamb in the
world. This was certainly true of what I have been eating this last week.
So if you love lamb but would like to eat healthily and maybe lose weight then no worries – just buy some of
the leaner lamb cuts and cook mindfully.
