Braised Lamb With Spring Veg Gremolata Food

BRAISED LAMB SHANKS WITH SPRING VEGETABLES AND SPRING GREMOLATA

Steps:

• For lamb:
• Sprinkle lamb shanks generously with salt and pepper; dust with flour. Heat oil in heavy large deep pot over medium-high heat. Working in 2 batches, if necessary, add lamb to pot and cook until browned on all sides, turning often, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer lamb to large bowl. Add onions, carrots, and celery to same pot; sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and tomato paste; stir 1 minute. Stir in broth, wine, parsley, thyme, and bay leaves. Return lamb to pot; bring to boil (liquid may not cover lamb completely). Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until lamb is very tender and begins to fall off bones, turning occasionally, about 3 hours.
• Using tongs, transfer lamb to platter. Discard bay leaves and parsley sprigs. Spoon off fat from surface of pan juices; discard. Using immersion blender, puree pan juices until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Return lamb shanks to pan juices. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool slightly. Chill uncovered until cold, then cover and keep chilled.
• For gremolata:
• Mix all ingredients in small bowl. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
• For vegetables:
• Bring large pot of salted water to boil. Add potatoes; cook until tender, about 18 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer potatoes to medium bowl. Add carrots to same pot; cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer carrots to bowl with potatoes. Add sugar snap peas to same pot; cook 1 minute. Drain. Add to bowl with potatoes and carrots. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.
• Bring lamb and pan juices to simmer over medium heat until heated through.
• Meanwhile, melt butter in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add all vegetables; sauté about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Transfer lamb and pan juices to large platter or bowl. Surround with vegetables; scatter pea tendrils over vegetables. Sprinkle lamb with gremolata and serve.
• Ingredient tip:
• Green garlic has a more delicate flavor than mature garlic. The tops of green garlic look like green onions; the root ends are white and light purple. Look for green garlic at farmers' markets during the spring months.

LAMB STEW WITH SPRING VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Heat the canola oil in a medium (10- to 11-inch) ovenproof pot or Dutch oven, such as Le Creuset, over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook for 5 minutes, until browned. Transfer the bacon to a large plate, leaving the fat in the pan. Dry the lamb with paper towels and toss it in a bowl first with 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper and then with the 1/4 cup of flour. Raise the heat to medium high and cook half the lamb in the bacon fat for 5 minutes, turning occasionally, until browned. Add the lamb to the plate with the bacon and brown the second batch, also transferring it to the plate. Add the garlic to the pot and cook for one minute.
• Pour the lamb and bacon, along with any juices that collect, back into the pot. Add the beef stock, wine, tomatoes (including the juice), thyme, rosemary, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper and bring to a boil, scraping up the brown bits in the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes, cover and place in the oven for 30 minutes. Add the carrots, potatoes, onions and turnips, cover and return to the oven for 1 hour, until all the vegetables are tender.
• Mash the 2 tablespoons of flour with the butter in a small bowl. Stir the mixture into the stew and simmer on top of the stove for 3 minutes. Off the heat, stir in the peas and parsley, season to taste and serve hot in large shallow bowls.

BRAISED LAMB WITH SPRING VEG & GREMOLATA

Steps:

• Make several slashes about 1cm deep in each shank, then put them in a large roasting tin. Rub the rosemary, oil and seasoning into the meat. Leave to marinate for 30 mins if you have time. Heat oven to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7.
• Brown the lamb shanks in the oven for 20 mins, turning halfway. Add the carrots and all but one of the garlic cloves, turn them in some of the fat in the pan, then roast for 5 mins more. Pour in the wine and stock (make sure the carrots aren't too submerged), then cover the tin tightly with foil. Reduce the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3 and cook for 2½ hrs or until the shanks are meltingly tender.
• Chop the parsley, lemon zest and the remaining garlic clove and mix to make the gremolata. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
• Lift the shanks and carrots from their broth, cover and keep warm. Skim most of the fat from the sauce, then boil the sauce hard for 10 mins in a pan to reduce it by half. Check the seasoning and add the peas and the onion greens for the last few mins.
• To serve, return the shanks and carrots to the tin, pour over the sauce, scatter with the gremolata and squeeze over some lemon juice, if you like.

BRAISED LEG OF LAMB WITH ROOT VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Trim any excess fat from the lamb and season with salt and pepper.
• In a large pot (with a tight-fitting lid), add the oil and heat it over a high flame.
• Place the lamb in the pot and let it sear on all sides until golden brown (about 12-15 minutes).
• Remove from the pot and drain off all of the oil except for 2 tablespoons.
• Add the garlic, rosemary, thyme, tomato paste and cook for 3-4 minutes.
• Add the wine to the pot and reduce by ¾.
• Place the lamb back into the pot and cover completely with chicken stock; bring to a simmer (about 15 minutes).
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Put the lid on the pot and place in the oven, and cook for 3 hours.
• Add the carrots, celery root, rutabaga and cippolini onions to the pot and cook for 1 more hour, until the meat is tender and falling off the bone.
• Remove the lamb and place it on a serving platter.
• Using a slotted spoon, remove the vegetables and arrange them around the lamb.
• Strain the remainder of the sauce and put it back in the pot; reduce by 3/4 (approximately 20 minutes) until thickened and richly flavored.
• Season with salt and pepper.

BRAISED LAMB SHANK WITH VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium high heat. Brown shanks in oil, about 20 minutes. Add water to cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for about 1 hour.
• Add potatoes, carrots and onions and simmer for about 1 hour. In a small bowl blend flour into melted butter to make a roux, then stir this into simmering dish to thicken.

BRAISED LAMB SHANKS WITH FAT PASTA AND GREMOLATA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 150C/Gas 2. Select a heavy-based, ovenproof pan that will hold the lamb shanks quite closely together. Season the shanks and put them in a colander. Throw the flour over them and shake it around over the sink.
• Heat half of the oil in the pan and sear the shanks on all sides until golden brown. Take the meat out and set aside. Fry the onions, celery, carrot and garlic, stirring from time to time. After 5 minutes, turn the heat down and cover.
• After 10-15 minutes of on-off stirring, the veg will have softened nicely. Put the meat back in and add the wine and the bay leaves. Let the wine reduce by a third, then tip in the tomatoes, along with enough stock so that the liquid just about covers the shanks.
• Add the olives and season.
• Pour in the rest of the oil, cover and place in the oven for 2-3 hours, until the meat chunks are coming away from the bone. Take the dish out of the oven and let it sit for 15 minutes with the lid on.
• Cook the pasta according to the directions.
• To make the gremolata, mix the chopped parsley, lemon zest, garlic, and some seasoning.
• Drain the pasta, return it to the pan and ladle in all of the veg and juice to coat it nicely.
• Toss gently and tong into a serving dish. Put the shanks on top, add a ladle or two more of the sauce and sprinkle with gremolata.