Sunday Independent (Ireland)

Irish lamb navarin

-

Method: A navarin is a French stew, traditiona­lly served in the spring, with seasonal veg and turnips or ‘navets’.

1 Cut the lamb shoulder into 5cm pieces and set them aside, ensuring there are no large pieces of sinew or fat left on the meat. Add a splash of olive oil to a large, heavy-based pan, and place it over a high heat. Add the lamb pieces in batches, so as not to overcrowd the pan, frying each side of the pieces until they are evenly dark, and golden in colour. Remove the lamb pieces from the pan and set them aside in a bowl, reserving the oil and fat.

2 Reduce to a medium heat and return any fat from cooking the meat to the pan. Add the garlic cloves and allow them to roast and caramelise in the lamb fat. Once they are golden, add the anchovy fillets and stir until they are dissolved. Add the tomato paste, allow to cook briefly, while stirring, then add the white wine and reduce the liquid by three-quarters.

3 Return the lamb pieces you set aside earlier to the pan, add the bouquet garni and pour in enough lamb stock or chicken stock, whichever you’re using, to cover. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat, and allow to simmer gently for one-and-a-half to two hours. When the lamb pieces are soft to the touch and gently falling apart, carefully remove them and strain off the liquid into a jug. Return the liquid to the same pan, place it back on a medium-high heat, and reduce the sauce by a quarter.

4 Pass the sauce through a strainer into a clean pan, then add the baby turnips and diced carrots. Cook the vegetables in the sauce on a gentle simmer for five to eight minutes, until they are tender. Once they are cooked, return the lamb pieces you set aside earlier to the sauce to keep them warm. Add the cooked haricot beans to the sauce and stir through. Add the parsley, the chopped mint and the chopped marjoram to the stew, divide it between bowls and serve immediatel­y.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Ireland