Spanish Lamb Stew Food

SPANISH LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 150C/130C fan/Gas 2.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in an ovenproof casserole dish over medium high heat.Season the lamb with salt and pepper.Brown the lamb in the oil, in batches if necessary, transferring to a plate when done and adding more oil as needed.
• When all the meat has been browned and set aside, turn the heat to medium then add the chopped onion and sliced garlic, seasoning with a little salt and pepper.Sauté, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the casserole and stirring regularly, until softening and starting to brown (12-15 min).
• If using the sherry or wine, stir it in, turn up the heat and allow to bubble until almost completely evaporated.
• With the heat at medium, stir in the tomatoes, smoked paprika and bay leaf.Bubble for a few minutes then add the vinegar, red pepper*, chickpeas, plus the browned lamb.Season with a little salt plus black pepper.Add enough stock to just cover the meat and vegetables, stir well, then put on a lid and bring to the boil.* The peppers end up very soft: if you prefer more of a bite then add them later e.g. when the stew has been in the oven for 30-40 minutes.
• Transfer the casserole to the oven and cook until the lamb is very tender (1½-2 hrs).Stir occasionally and check the stew isn't sticking to the bottom of the casserole. Top up with more stock or water if necessary.To reduce the sauce and concentrate the flavours, remove the lid and return to the oven at 220C/200C fan/Gas 2 for 5-10 minutes.
• Remove from the oven, taste and add more seasoning if needed.Stir in the chopped parsley and serve with bread plus salad if liked.Leftovers can be stored for 2 days in the fridge or frozen.

SPANISH-STYLE LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Warm oil in a large heavy-bottom pot with a lid or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, sprinkle lamb generously with salt and pepper and cook in batches to avoid overcrowding, turning once or twice, until each piece is well browned all over, about 15 minutes total. Transfer pieces to a plate as they brown.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat and add onions, bell pepper, garlic and a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions and peppers are softened, about 5 minutes. Add pimentón and stir for a minute. Stir in tomatoes, breaking them into bite-size pieces and scraping browned bits from the pot. Add wine, chicken stock, vinegar and bay leaves and bring just to a boil.
• Return lamb to pot and reduce heat so mixture is bubbling very gently. Partly cover pot and cook, stirring every 20 minutes or so, until lamb is very tender, about 2 hours. Discard bay leaves. Stir in beans and cook another 10 minutes to heat them through. Stir in parsley and adjust the seasoning if necessary.

SPANISH-STYLE SLOW-COOKED LAMB SHOULDER & BEANS

Steps:

• To make the spice mix, combine all of the ingredients together with a large pinch of salt. Slash the lamb shoulder all over with a sharp knife and rub in. If you have the time, marinate for up to 24 hrs, but this is not essential.
• Heat the oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2. Heat the oil in a large flameproof casserole dish or roasting tin over a medium-high heat, add the onions, carrots and garlic and sizzle for 5 mins until the onions and carrots are softened. Pour over the stock, then bring to the boil. Nestle the lamb in the pan and cover, then transfer to the oven and roast for 2 hrs.
• Uncover and transfer the lamb to a plate using tongs. Stir the beans, peppers and olives through the stock in the pan, sit the lamb back on top and return to the oven, uncovered, for 1 hr 30 mins until the lamb is cooked through. Transfer the lamb to a board and shred using two forks. Stir the parsley through the braised beans before serving.

SPANISH LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Cut the meat into 1/2 inch cubes. Coat in flour and brown in the shortening in a pre-heated dutch oven or large, thick-bottomed pot. Brown in batches if it doesn't all fit in one layer.
• Add the water, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.
• Stir occasionally and check to make sure there's enough water. Depending on the amount of connective tissue in the meat the sauce will get very thick. Thick is good, but if it gets too thick it will burn at the bottom.
• Add onion, red peppers, and rice. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
• Continue occasionally stirring and checking the water.
• Add the tomatoes, peas, thyme, and vinegar. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Serve hot with some crusty bread.

SPANISH LAMB WITH SHERRY, HONEY & PEPPERS

Steps:

• Make sure your lamb isn't too damp - pat it dry with kitchen paper if you need to, otherwise it won't colour well. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large casserole dish and brown the lamb over a high heat in batches (if you crowd the pan the meat will sweat and not brown). Remove with a slotted spoon as you go. When all the lamb is browned, add the remaining oil and cook the onion and peppers over a medium heat until the onion is golden and the vegetables are softened. Add the garlic and paprika, and cook for a further 1 min, then add the sherry and bring to a simmer.
• Put all the lamb back in the pan, along with the stock, saffron, sherry vinegar and honey. Season and bring to just under the boil. Turn the heat down, cover the pan and leave to cook very gently for 2 hrs, turning the meat every so often.
• In the last half hour of cooking time, remove the lid so that the sherry and stock can reduce. You want to end up with completely tender meat in a flavoursome gravy - how long this takes will depend on how wide your pan is so you may need to give it longer than 30 mins. Check the seasoning. You're unlikely to need to adjust the vinegar or honey but you might want to sweeten the dish slightly. Scatter the parsley or almonds on top (or use both). Serve with the couscous.