Cider House Lamb Stew Food

LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• Cut the onions and turnips into quarters. Toss the onions, and turnips, carrots, and fennel lightly in oil and place them on baking sheets. Roast the vegetables for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. When vegetables are a dark caramel color, remove them from the oven. Reserve 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 turnip, and the stalk of fennel; set aside. Put the remainder of the vegetables in a large pot with the chicken stock, garlic, orange juice, apple cider, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, star anise, cumin seeds, orange zest, salt and pepper. Cook the broth over high heat until reduced by about half.
• While the broth is simmering, remove the skin and excess fat from the leg of lamb and cut the meat into 1-inch cubes. Put the cubes on a wire rack to drain or on a clean towel to soak up excess moisture. Add some of the cooking oil to a large heavy skillet and heat over high heat. When the oil is hot, carefully add the diced lamb. Cook the lamb, in batches as necessary, for 3 minutes on each side, or until browned. Transfer the lamb to a roasting pan. Add the wine to the skillet that the lamb was cooked in and cook, over high heat, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Cook the wine until reduced by about half and the solids have come up off the pan. Pour the reduced wine over the lamb.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Strain the broth and discard the solids. Pour the broth over the lamb in the roasting pan. Cover the pan with a lid or parchment paper and braise until the lamb is tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Once the lamb is tender, remove it from the oven and add the reserved roasted vegetables to the pan. Place the roasting pan over medium heat on the stovetop and bring to a simmer. Add salt, pepper, and fresh herbs, to taste. Serve the stew with rustic bread on the side.

SLOW-COOKED IRISH STEW

Steps:

• Heat the slow cooker if necessary, then heat the oil in a frying pan. Sizzle the bacon until crisp, tip into the slow-cooker pot, then brown the chunks of lamb in the pan. Transfer to the slow-cooker pot along with the thyme, onions, carrots, potatoes, stock, bay leaves and enough water to cover the lamb. Cover and cook on Low for 7 hrs.
• Stir in the pearl barley and leek, and cook on High for 1 hr more until the pearl barley is tender.
• Stir in the butter, season and serve scooped straight from the dish.

CIDER & HONEY ROAST LAMB LEG

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 220C/ Gas 7. Weigh the lamb and calculate the final cooking time at 12 minutes per 450g for medium rare, 15 minutes per 450g for medium.
• Score the fat around the leg of the lamb in a criss-cross pattern, drizzle with a little olive oil, then rub all over with salt and pepper. Place in a deep roasting pan and scatter the garlic and thyme over and around. Pour over the lemon juice and drizzle again with olive oil. Sprinkle with a little more seasoning, then roast in the hot oven for 20 minutes.
• Slice the apples into quarters and cut off the cores. Remove the lamb from the oven and reduce the heat to 180C/ Gas 4. Scatter the apples around the pan and baste the lamb with cider. Turn the lamb over and drizzle with 2 tbsp of honey. Return to the oven for 30 minutes.
• Turn the lamb, baste the meat with the pan juices, then drizzle over another teaspoon of honey. Continue to roast for the calculated time. To check it, insert a skewer into the thickest part of the lamb, then press the meat lightly; the redder the juices, the rarer the meat. Lift the lamb onto a carving board and cover with foil. Rest in a warm place.
• At this point, the roasting apples and garlic should be very soft. Press with a fork, then tip the contents of the pan into a sieve over a saucepan. Push with the back of a ladle to extract all the juices and flavour. Discard the pulp. Place the saucepan over a medium heat and add the stock. Boil and bubble until the sauce has thickened. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then pour into a warm jug. Carve the lamb into thin slices and serve drizzled with the apples and cider gravy.

HEARTY LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large casserole. Tip in the lamb and cook for 5 mins until any liquid has disappeared, then add the onion, carrots and leeks. Cook for 5 mins more, stirring often, until the veg is starting to soften.
• Pour over the stock, add the rosemary, cover with a lid and cook over a low heat for 1 hr. Stir in the beans and cook for 30 mins more, topping up with water if necessary, until the lamb is tender and cooked through. Serve with some crusty bread or potatoes, if you like.

EASY LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish. Add the meat in batches and brown over a high heat for 5 mins, then lift onto a plate. Tip in the onions and carrots, and cook for 8-10 mins until starting to colour. Scatter over the flour and stir for a few minutes, then stir in the tomato purée and cook for a few minutes more. Tip the meat and any resting juices back into the dish and stir well. Pour over the stock, tuck in the herbs and season well. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat.
• Cover with a lid and put in the oven for about 2 hrs 30 mins until the meat is tender. Once cooled, the stew can be chilled and frozen for up to three months - defrost completely before reheating on the hob for 5 mins over a medium heat, until piping hot. Leave to settle for a minute or two, then serve with mash and greens.