RUYA’S KESKEK BARLEY RISOTTO WITH PULLED LAMB AND BABY ONIONS
Ingredients and method for the barley risotto
150g chickpeas
2 lamb neck fillets
15g caraway seeds 1l chicken stock
50g unsalted butter 100g shallots, finely diced 150ml verjus
600g pearl barley
Soak the chickpeas overnight. Marinate the lamb neck in the crushed caraway seeds, and keep it uncovered in the refrigerator, also overnight.
Add the meat and soaked chickpeas to a pot, cover it with the chicken stock, bring to the boil and then simmer until the chickpeas become soft and tender.
Transfer the chickpeas and meat to a clean pot. Clean the meat from the bones and shred.
Melt the butter over medium heat, add finely chopped shallots and cook for 1 to 2 mins.
Deglaze with verjus until reduced by half.
Add the barley, and stir until it absorbs most of the liquid. Reduce the heat and add the chicken stock until it’s just covering the barley and stir until absorbed. Repeat, adding stock to barley a little at a time, waiting until barley absorbs stock. Stir very often for 25 to 30 mins, or until barley is al dente.
Add the shredded lamb and cooked chickpeas. Place on a tray to cool down and refrigerate until needed.
Ingredients and method for the pulled lamb shoulder
60g pomegranate molasses 8g cumin seeds, ground 8g coriander, ground
1 lemon, juice only
10g roasted garlic, finely chopped 25ml grapeseed oil
2kg lamb shoulder, bone in
2 red onions, sliced
600ml lamb stock
15g castor sugar
Picked herbs and micro cress Mix the molasses, cumin, coriander, lemon, garlic and oil together. Pierce the lamb all over with a sharp knife, going in by about 1cm with your knife tip. Put the lamb in a big bowl and pour half the glaze over it, massage it over and in to the meat, turning it over so you have covered all of it. Marinate overnight. Place the lamb and onions in a vacuum bag, and pour the rest of the glaze on top of it. Then pour half the stock around the lamb (not on it), seal the bag fully and slow-cook in a water bath at 720C degrees for 22 hours.
After the lamb is cooked, place in a pan with the entire glaze and cook until the meat is beautifully glossy. Remove and take the lamb out of the pan and pop it on a dish or on a board. Cover it with foil and rest for 15 minutes.
While it is resting, take the contents of the pan, which will be very oily and have black pieces of pomegranate molasses. Carefully drain the oil, leaving just the molasses and onions.
Place the pan on the hob on medium heat and add the remaining stock. Start scraping the edges of the tray to get all the sticky deliciousness melting with the stock to create a dark and shiny gravy. Once you’ve got everything from the edges and smoothed the gravy, add the sugar and turn the heat down to a light simmer. Let it reduce by about half, so it’s a nice sticky glaze. Take the rested lamb and put it in the reduced glaze and coat well.
To serve
Reheat the barley risotto, add a little butter and correct the seasoning. Take about 180g of lamb and reheat in the oven with the onions and a little stock until hot.
Place the risotto in the serving dish and pull the lamb into large shreds, arrange the onions and pulled lamb around the barley rice and drizzle over the remaining glaze. Garnish with picked herbs and micro cress, as desired.