Lamb

Like all the recipes posted in our blog and included in the Our Galley series of e-books, every one of these dishes have been prepared by Karen in the galley on board 'Our Dreamtime'. Living on the hook or in a marina doesn't mean you can't eat great meals.

Lamb has always been a favourite red meat of ours. We particularly enjoyed discovering new lamb dishes in the Mediterranean and North Africa when we cruised over there.

Karen will soon be publishing another volume of the Our Galley e-book series containing a huge range of her lamb recipes. Meanwhile here's Karen's take on some old favourites and some of the dishes we discovered in our travels.

Lemon and Sage Slow Cooked Lamb.

The combination of Lemon Sage and Lamb, how something so simple can taste so good may be difficult to understand, but it does! Cooked until tender, half braised in a lemon flavoured liquid that transforms into a luscious sauce – no mucking around with gravy!

This recipe reminds me of our time sailing Sicily. One of the most important aspects of Sicilian cuisine is the quality of the ingredients used. Sicily, like many other areas of Italy, still follows the seasons very closely. It is virtually impossible, for example, to find non-seasonal fruit or vegetables in most markets. The result is that ingredients are fresh, often produced in Sicily (or Italy) and are wonderfully fragrant and tasty. So, to get the best out of our recipes you should buy fresh, in-season ingredients where possible. These ingredients were picked straight from the farmers garden the day before, so the freshness adds remarkable flavour to your dish.

Ingredients

1 tbs olive oil

2tbs plain flour

500 grams diced lamb

250 mls of Semillon white wine

2 large ripe tomatoes diced

12 cheery tomatoes halved

4 garlic cloves peeled left whole

8 shallots peeled and halved

3 bay leaves
8 mixed peppercorns

6 fresh basil leaves sliced thinly

5 fresh sage leaves

1 tbs of rosemary leaves

1/2 bunch of fresh parsley storks diced leaves roughly chopped

12 olives

zest of one lemon

1 large lemon cut into thick rounds

1 medium sweet potato peeled and diced into 1 cm cubes.
salt to taste

I added but not necessary... 3 tbs of mixed dried lentils, freekeh and beans.

Serve with fresh crusty bread

Let’s get Cooking

Preheat oven to 140C

Prepare all of your ingredients by dicing or chopping as instructed.

In a container which has a fitted lid place the flour and lamb. Shake the container well o coat the lamb.

Heat oil in a large heavy based pan, that has a lid and is oven proof.

One oil is shimmering add the bay leaves and lamb, don’t crowd the lamb, cook in batches if needed. Turning the meat until a nice caramelised colour has formed.

Add the shallots, the diced tomatoes, rosemary, parsley storks, garlic, basil and 125 mls of wine. Scrap the bottom of the pot to loosen any yummy bits.

Bring to simmer and let the wine reduce, stirring occasionally.

Add the rest of the wine and again let reduce stirring occasionally.

Add the lemon zest, sage leaves, sweet potato, and cherry tomatoes stir to combine.

Add the lemon rounds, peppercorns and 1/2 cup of water, stir to combine. Add olives. Taste add salt.

Place lid on pot and place in oven for 90 minutes. Or turn gas down to your lowest setting and cook on stove top for 60 minutes stirring occasionally to stop sticking.

Or if you wish to use your Shuttle Chef. You would of been using one pot for your cooking. Place this pot in the bottom. Fill the other pot with boiling water and place on top. Seal your ShuttleChef and cook for min 3 hours.

Serve with the parsley leaves strewn over and crusty bread to cook up the juices

Enjoy!

Made with fragrant spices, roasted nuts, herbs and aromatics, these lamb kofta will take your taste buds on an adventure. We discovered Koftas in Gibraltar in a tiny lane way where an elderly Moroccan gentleman cooked Koftas and Kebabs over the Hibachi Gill in the laneway. Kofta is a Middle Eastern dish made from ground lamb or beef mixed with aromatics like onions and spices. I was fortunate to be welcomed into his tiny prep kitchen and found his secret was to add minced vegetables, toasted nuts, herbs, and spices to the meat to give the kofta deep, complex flavour. He served them with the simple sides of Tzatziki, Tomato and Onion Salad dressed in Red Wine Vinegar and a pinch of salt and sugar.

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup each pine nuts, almonds, and walnuts (total 3/4 cup)

1 small onion, roughly chopped

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1 small red capsicum, roughly chopped

1/2 cup cilantro leaves, gently packed (or substitute with parsley)

1kg ground lamb

3/4 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1-1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp white pepper

2 tbs olive oil for cooking

12 small wooden kofta skewers

Tzatziki and Tomato Salad for Serving

Let’s get Cooking

Place the nuts in a bowl of a small food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Transfer the nuts to a small dry skillet over medium heat; cook, stirring frequently, until the nuts are lightly browned and fragrant, 5 to 6 minutes. Pour the nuts into mixing bowl large enough to hold all of the ingredients and set aside to cool.

Place the onion, garlic, capsicum, and cilantro in the bowl of the food Pulse until the vegetables are finely minced but not puréed. Set a fine sieve over a medium bowl. Transfer the minced vegetables to the sieve and use a rubber spatula to press out as much liquid as possible. Add the strained vegetable mixture to the bowl with the nuts.

To the veggies and nuts, add the lamb, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, salt, and white pepper. Using your hands, mash the mixture together until evenly combined. The more you combine the better the meat will stick to the skewers

Form the mixture into lengths about 10 cm in diameter and 3cm. Place a skewer on each and form the shape around the skewer. cover, then refrigerate until ready to cook.

Preheat the pan or BBQ to medium-high heat and add oil. Cook, until browned, about 4 minutes per side or until cooked through. Serve with tzatziki and tomato salad.

Make-Ahead: The koftas can be made and refrigerated up to two days ahead of time.

Freezer Instructions: The uncooked koftas can be frozen for up to three months. (Freeze the them on a baking sheet or plate so their shape sets, then transfer them to a sealable plastic bag for easy storage.) Defrost them overnight in the refrigerator prior to serving and then cook as directed.