Lamb & Mutton Recipes

[Mitra]

Index of Lamb & Mutton recipes:


Paula Wolfert's Moroccan lamb tagine smothered with lemon and olives
Simon Hopkinson's Roast Leg of Lamb with Anchovy, Garlic & Rosemary
Paula Wolfert's Fall Apart Lamb Shanks with Almond-Chocolate Picada
Lamb Curry

[Mitra]

Paula Wolfert's Moroccan lamb tagine smothered with lemon and olives (http://www.paula-wolfert.com/recipes/mor_tagine.html). Obviously, to keep it LC, ignore the recommendation of serving with Moroccan bread ;).

No matter what the month, there is a tree somewhere in Morocco bearing fruit for the tagine pot. The combinations may seem unlikely at times, but I guarantee you will find them delicious: lamb with olives, quinces, apples, pears, raisins, prunes, dates, with or without honey, with or without a complexity of spices.

In the fall, use greening or wine sap apples. In the summer, try fresh apricots, or the type of hard, fuzzy, green crab apples called, in Morocco, lehmenn. In winter, I recommend the heavy and rich tagines made with prunes or dates, and, anytime of the year, lemon and olives.

The combination of lemon and olives is so popular in Morocco that one ought to regard it as a general theme on which variations, each one applicable to a specific category of sauce, are possible. Different-flavored olives work best with specific combinations of spices. For example, the following multi- spiced classic employs the green-cracked type of olives, more appropriate here than mellow reddish purple olives, which are used with sauces made with a combination of ginger, saffron, and olive oil. In the following recipe, as the sauce begins to boil, the cracked olives will release some of their juices, which in turn will thicken the sauce.

Most tagines involve slow simmering of less-expensive meats. The ideal cuts of lamb are the neck, shoulder or shank cooked until it is falling off the bone. Very few Moroccan tagines require initial browning; if there is to be browning it is invariably done after the lamb has been simmered and the flesh has become butter-tender and very moist. In order to accomplish this, the cooking liquid must contain some fat. Don't be concerned by this, later it is all skimmed off.

I haven't actually done this recipe yet, it's still on my to-do list, but I'm a great Paula Wolfert fan.

[Mitra]

Simon Hopkinson's Roast Leg of Lamb with Anchovy, Garlic & Rosemary (http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2008/02/roast-leg-of-lamb-with-anchovy-garlic-and-rosemary-recipe.html).

I love this way of roasting lamb. If you're buying frozen lamb, then the season isn't an issue, but if you get it fresh, then the spring/early summer lamb is generally very tender and mild flavoured, with the flavour becoming stronger as the lambs age through the year, so they're strongest in early spring, just before the new season's lamb arrives (April-ish is the changeover if you're in the Northern hemishphere). The strong flavours in this recipe are best with more mature lamb, or even mutton - so winter and early spring are the times I'd cook it.

[Mitra]

Paula Wolfert's Fall Apart Lamb Shanks with Almond-Chocolate Picada (http://www.wgbh.org/cainan/article?item_id=1991546).

I've made this one a couple of times, but used shoulder rather than shanks, because the shanks are always frozen at my butchers, and I prefer to get the fresh meat. It was wonderful. As with the roast lamb recipe above, the strong flavours of the sauce would be overwhelming with delicate young spring lamb - better with the more mature meat.

You can leave most or even all of the bread out of the picada with no problem.

[Mitra]

Lamb Curry. This is a mild, rich, creamy sort of curry.

Ingredients:
3 Tbsp ghee (or coconut oil)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp sweet spice mix (cumin, coriander, cardamom, cinnamon, mace, alllspice, clove)
1/4 tsp chili powder or cayenne
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 lb lamb (raw or left-over roast) trimmed and cut in 1” cubes
1” cube of root ginger, gratedsalt & pepper
1/2 14oz tin tomatoes, or 3 fresh peeled, seeded & chopped
4 tbsp coconut cream

Procedure:
Melt the ghee or coconut oil. Add the onion and cook until it is soft and pale gold coloured. Add the spice mix, chili/cayenne and garlic and cook for a minute. Add the lamb, and cook for a few minutes, stirring to cook all sides. Add the grated ginger and the coconut cream, and stir until the coconut cream is all melted and mixed in. Add the tomates and 1/2 cup of water.Cover and cook slowly on the stove top or in a low oven (150°C/300°F) for an hour or more. Check from time to time and add a little more water if necessary, or leave the lid off for a few minutes at the end to finish with a small amount of sauce that coats the meat rather than a lot of liquid.

[petra65]

I think I've done a lamb tagine. I'll have to look for the recipe.

Is that sweet spice mix like garam masala?

[Mitra]

It's not quite the same, but garam masala would work - that one's pretty much a recipe I made up. I tend to include some cloves and allspice - I can't remember if you'd find them in a garam mix, but just try whatever you like and/or have to hand.