Lamb Shanks with Soft Polenta
Melt in the mouth shanks with soft polenta
I was looking to make a dish to unleash the carnivore within. One that would suit the current "cold snap" as it's referred to on the news. What's better than slow cooking some meat on the bone and mopping up all the juices with some crusty bread? Nothing! I really wanted to embrace the cooler weather with a hearty dish. I love lamb and when I saw these beauties on sale I couldn't resist. It's quite an inexpensive meal overall and paired with polenta even better. I thought about using mashed potatoes with the lamb shanks but instead paired with some really high fibre cornmeal a.k.a polenta. Polenta can be quite "bland" on its own so I jazzed mine up with some good Danish butter and some Grana Padano cheese. The final touch being heaps of cracked pepper. Jut be let it known that I used "instant" polenta. There was no way you were going to catch me sitting at the stove stirring for 45 mins. I understand that a lot of Italians consider the instant variety a "sin". Well, it was the quickest sin I've ever committed! Five mins to be exact...LOL I also forgot to mention that I garnished my lamb shanks with some gremolata. Gremolata is a blend of finely chopped flat leaf parsley, garlic and lemon zest. Its traditionally spooned on that other Italian classic osso buco. I made mine without the garlic. It gave the dish an added lift and some extra zing!
RECIPE FOR LAMB SHANKS
Again, let me emphasise that I have no "set" amount of ingredients when I cook winter type stews. I always fry my meat off first ensuring it browns all over and seals the falvours. I also make a "base" by sauteeing some diced onions or leeks with some carrot and celery in some olive oil. To this dish I also added a fresh chopped chilli and some pancetta. Once the base had become translucent I added my browned shanks in along with their juices. I then placed in a can of chopped tomatoes, about 2 cups of chicken stock and a decent amount of red wine to cover the shanks. My herbs of choice were some fresh thyme and oregano and a few bay leaves. Once this had come to a boil on the stove, I placed my "oven friendly" (no plastic handles!!!) pot into a pre heated oven. I let it sit in there for about 2-2.5 hours at 160 deg C. The result were soft, "fall of the bone" cooked shanks.
RECIPE FOR SOFT POLENTA
It's almost like watching a science experiment. The moment you take the polenta off the stove it starts to "firm" up on the plate. This is my quick and easy way to cook it.
- 2 cups of water
- 2 cups of full cream milk
- 1 cup of instant polenta
- 50 grams of butter
- 1/2 a cup of grated Grana Padano
- salt and pepper to taste
Place the milk and water n a medium heat and allow it to come to a boil. Stir in the polenta and stir very quickly with a wooden spoon. It will thicken almost instantly. Look for the consistency of mashed potatoes. Take off the heat an stir in the butter and cheese. Add salt to taste and heaps of cracked black pepper. You may wish to add more butter or cheese but don't over do it.
Scoop the polenta out of the pot and place it on the plate. Place shanks on top and garnish with the chopped parsley and lemon zest or "faux" gremolata.
Moroccan Style Spiced Lamb with Lentils and Baba Ghanoush
Prepping the lamb...and the finished dish.
This is my entry for the Royal Foodie Joust. Jenn, who hosts this monthly competition has given us "foodies" a chance to get creative with a monthly challenge. Last months winner who chose this months 3 ingredients, chose cinnamon, lentils and eggplant (aubergine). Great combination! So off to work I went creating a dish based on those ingredients. Here's my creation. Moroccan spiced lamb (using the cinnamon as part of the spice rub), a lentil and pancetta "pilaf" using the lentils of course and baba ghanoush using the eggplant. Here's a visual and written breakdown of this recipe.
PREPARING THE LAMB
I used two organic racks of lamb that I purchased form my very knowledgeable butcher. I made a spice rub using about a teaspoon of each of the following. Ground cinnamon, ground fennel seeds, cumin, turmeric, ground ginger and ground coriander seeds. To this blend of dry spices I added a good splash of olive oil and the juice of half a lemon. I created a wonderful aromatic paste that I rubbed all over the lamb and let it marinate in the refrigerator for about 4 hours. Once the lamb had come back to room temperature I placed it in a hot oven for about 45 mins at 200 deg C. This ensured I got a lovely pink colour in the middle and the lamb wasn't overcooked or destroyed!
LENTIL AND PANCETTA PILAF
Lentils and pancetta...a great combination here!
I had originally intended to make a warm lentil salad as my base. But I slightly overcooked the lentils and it resembled more of a "pilaf". Oh well! the texture was slightly thicker than I had hoped for but it still tasted great. To make this I used 250 g of lentils. I picked all the slightly "scarred" ones out and I soaked them in some cold water. Once I had re rinsed them after their soaking I boiled them in a combination of one cup of water and one cup of chicken stock. I added a little salt and pepper to taste and one bay leaf. Once they had cooked (or slightly overcooked in my case!) I added some fried pancetta to them. I love pancetta. It's basically the Italian version of bacon but much better. It's a little saltier and spicier and it lends great character to a dish.
BABA GHANOUSH
Preparing the baba ghanoush
I've never made baba ghanoush before. I've never even made that similar Greek classic "melitzanosalata". The principles are similar but the ingredients vary slightly. Baba ghanoush is a dip which originates in the Middle East and it uses eggplant as its base ingredient. It's actually quite simple to make and it has a very addictive taste. I basically baked an eggplant in a very hot oven that I had pierced all over with a fork. This took about one hour. Once the eggplant had been removed and cooled down I peeled the dark skin off it and removed any seeds that were still visible inside the silky cooked flesh. I then placed the cooked eggplant flesh into a food processor and added two finely chopped garlic cloves, one and a half tablespoons of tahini (middle Eastern ground sesame paste), salt and pepper, the juice of half a lemon and whilst the motor was running, I added enough extra virgin olive oil to make a creamy concoction. (The amount of olive oil might vary slightly but just use enough to make it creamy).
The finished dish.
And finally I put all the cooked parts of the dish together. The lentil pilaf was used as the base. The lamb was placed on top of this and the baba ghanoush was scooped on top. A fantastic blend of flavours and combinations. Also a great challenge using those three specified ingredients of cinnamon, lentils and eggplant.
Steak Sandwich...Greek Style
Greek style steak sandwich...with tzatziki
Woah! The tzatziki recipe I posted the other day certainly had a lot of "passionate" responses. It was good to see. Everyone loves their food and has a particular way of preparing tzatziki. I learnt a few things myself and this is why I love blogging. You can really learn a lot. Peter kindly pointed out to me that I forgot to salt the grated cucumbers. Its a good step to remember as the salt helps to draw out the extra moisture. Thanks Peter. Ivy pointed out that you could try tzatziki mixed with mustard. I'd never heard of that and I was quite interested to know more. Jenn noted that it tastes great with low fat yogurt, but it should be the FAGE brand. I know that brand but I haven't seen it here in Australia. That yogurt is delicious and the low fat one is pretty thick. Thank you to everyone who responded with such kind suggestions.
My post today will cover another way to use tzatziki. In a hearty steak sandwich. It basically utilises some of the ingredients that I prepared in my antipasto. I had some leftover roasted tomatoes, tzatziki and olive ciabatta bread. I wanted to play around in the kitchen and see how far I could stretch these ingredients. Then I thought about making a steak sandwich and using the tzatziki as my sauce. It was hearty and very filling. It's a real no brainer and very simple to prepare. I used a thick (quite thick actually!) piece of lamb fillet that I marinated in some olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper. I then seared it in a "chargrill pan" (one with ridges in it) for about 5 mins and then cooked it in the oven for about 10. I let it rest and then made my sandwich with the other ingredients. Some beautiful organic salad leaves. The roasted amoroso tomatoes and the tzatziki. The only thing I think this sandwich could have benefited from is some fried onions. Overall I was very impressed and it was a good way to use the leftover tzatziki.
Happy eating everyone!
Dukkah Crusted Lamb with Coriander Pesto
Dukkah Crusted Lamb
A friend noted the other day that I had been cooking a fair few salads here on my blog. He said it would be good if I could do some more meals with "bite". I interpreted that as meaning he wanted some meals that were a little more "filling". So I gave into my caveman instincts and decided to whip a meal fit for any carnivore. With a little flair of course! I had actually been craving lamb since my return from Greece. A quick visit to the local butchers had netted me some beautiful organic lamb fillets. Another visit to the deli and I noticed some freshly prepared dukkah for sale. "Great flavours" I thought. The lamb and the dukkah were a marriage made in heaven. Dukkah is that exotic Middle Eastern blend of ground hazelnuts, toasted sesame seeds, ground cumin and coriander. Traditionally served with bread and olive oil, it's quite versatile and can be used to flavour just about anything. I love its simplicity versatility.
When I got home I brainstormed and worked out this great quick recipe. The coriander or cilantro pesto was a last minute inclusion and added another dimension to the dish. Very simple, very quick and very tasty. I drizzled some extra virgin olive oil over the lamb and then sprinkled a liberal amount of the dukkah over it. I massaged the dukkah into the lamb making sure it was coated evenly. After letting it rest and marinate in the fridge for half an hour I threw it into a hot pan and seared it on all sides. I then placed the pan (with a stainless steel handle...not a plastic one!) into an oven that had been preheating at 200 deg C. I let it "bake" or cook for about 10 mins. Once it was out I placed onto another plate, covered it in foil and let it rest for about 5 mins. It's very important to let the meat rest as this allows it to maintain its juiciness and tenderness. Once I was ready to serve it, I thought it looked kind of naked. It was screaming for something else. So out came the coriander or cilantro to US folks and bang! Another marriage was born! I placed a bunch of coriander leaves and stems into a food processor, added some whole ground roasted almonds, a squeeze of half a lime, a good amount of extra virgin olive oil and some salt and pepper for seasoning. The "pesto" or salsa was just what the lamb needed. Even I was impressed!
Lamb and coriander pesto