Easter lamb
HB-6876 · Hand-built original
Lamb neck braised on the bone with Rioja, tomatoes and smoked paprika, finished with a pounded almond, saffron and bread garnish sharpened with sherry vinegar.
Main ingredient: chicken
Pairs well with: roasted potatoes, rice pilaf, green beans, caesar salad, garlic bread
Ingredients
- 2lb 4oz lamb neck, on the bone
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 celery sticks, chopped
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
- ½ fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 7oz roasted red peppers, julienned
- 2 bay leaves
- ¼ oz fresh thyme sprigs, leaves removed
- 1 rosemary sprig, leaves removed and chopped
- 7fl oz Rioja red wine
- 14 oz tin chopped tomatoes
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika
- 18fl oz chicken stock
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1oz whole blanched almonds, toasted and roughly chopped
- pinch saffron
- 1 garlic clove, chopped
- 1¾oz day-old bread, toasted and roughly chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh flatleaf parsley
- 1–2 tbsp sherry vinegar
Method
- Season the lamb neck generously with salt and black pepper, then brown it all over in the 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a hot casserole and set the meat aside on a plate.
- Tip the celery, onion, carrot, fennel, crushed garlic, roasted red peppers, bay leaves, thyme and rosemary into the same casserole and cook them gently for 20 minutes, until the vegetables have softened into the oil.
- Pour in the Rioja and let it bubble until the wine has reduced by about half, concentrating around the vegetables.
- Stir in the chopped tomatoes and the smoked paprika and give the sauce 2 to 3 more minutes on the heat.
- Return the lamb to the casserole, pour the chicken stock over it, bring everything to a simmer, cover with the lid and braise for an hour and a half, until the meat yields easily on its bones.
- Pound the toasted almonds with the saffron, the chopped garlic clove and the toasted bread in a pestle and mortar or a food processor until the mixture forms coarse crumbs.
- Work the second measure of olive oil, the parsley and the sherry vinegar into those crumbs to make a loose paste, then stir the paste through the finished lamb so it thickens and perfumes the sauce as it is served.
Prep: 30 min · Cook: 2 h
Nutrition (per serving, where published)
Estimated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient data