BRAAIED LAMB
BRITISH celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall says this recipe for lamb with salsa verde is perfect for the summer barbecue season: little does he know that in South Africa, we braai all year round, hot or cold, rain or shine!
“The simple procedure of chargrilling lightly marinated lamb and serving it pink with salsa verde was something I learnt as a chef at the River Cafe,” he says.
“I often come back to it. Boning and ‘butterflying’ a leg of lamb produces neat portions, which expose a greater surface area of the meat to both the marinade and the barbecue than straight-cut leg steaks.”
However, he does advise, if butterflying and boning daunt you, then “cutting the meat into cubes and mounting them on wooden skewers after marinating does much the same job. Or use lamb chops.”
Both versions can be cooked indoors, on a ridged cast-iron grill pan, and serve six when served with accompaniments.
INGREDIENTS:
6 butterflied lamb portions, from large leg, or cut up in large cubes for skewering
A dozen good sprigs of rosemary 6 garlic cloves, bashed to release the husk, then roughly chopped
2–3 tablespoons olive oil A few good twists of black pepper
Salsa verde: 1 small garlic clove
A good bunch of flat-leaf parsley, trimmed of coarse stalks
Leaves from 3–4 sprigs of tarragon 4–5 anchovy fillets
About 1 teaspoon capers
About 1 teaspoon mustard (Dijon or English)
A pinch of sugar A few drops of lemon juice or vinegar
2–3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
METHOD:
For the meat: bruise the rosemary needles by rubbing the sprigs in your hand, then roughly strip the needles into a bowl. Add the garlic, olive oil and pepper and then the meat. Toss all together well and leave for at least two hours (4-6 would be good).
Remove meat from marinade and wipe lightly, but leave bits of garlic and rosemary sticking to it. Place the portions (or 5 or 6 cubes mounted on a wooden skewer soaked in water for about 30 minutes) over a fairly hot barbecue. Let them sear on the bars for a couple of minutes and they should turn without sticking, then turn them every couple of minutes to prevent too much blackening on one side.
Depending on the thickness of the meat and how pink you want it, the butterflied pieces will take 9-15 minutes, the kebabs 6-10.
For the salsa verde: Finely chop the garlic. Then add the herbs, anchovies and capers and chop together until the ingredients are well mixed and fairly fine in texture. Transfer to a bowl and mix in a little mustard, sugar, lemon juice or vinegar and black pepper, plus enough olive oil to give a glossy, spoonable consistency. As you add these last ingredients, taste and tweak the mixture until you get something you like.
Serve the lamb with salsa verde, in a bun or split pita bread. Or plate up more formally, accompanied by chargrilled vegetables or ratatouille and, perhaps, rosemary roast new potatoes.
The green sauce is best made immediately before serving but it will keep for a few days, covered or in a jar, in the fridge. – The Telegraph