Slow Cooked Lamb with Potatoes – Kuzi de Pesah

I always liked lamb and when looking for a great recipe that uses it, what better place to find it than in a Sephardic cookbook?

From Stella’s Sephardic Kitchen (page 157) by Stella Cohen:

Detail of photo by: Marc Hoberman, on page 156

An easy one-pan lamb and potato dish which is perfect as a family meal and a chilly night. The lamb is gently simmered on the stovetop then briefly browned in the oven. Traditionally this flavorsome dish is served on the Passover dinner, paired with a green spring salad or braised green beans.

3 1/4 lb shoulder of lamb, cut through the bone into even chunks *
5 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, roughly chopped
2 fresh bay leaves
2 small sprigs fresh rosemary
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
3-4 cups hot chicken soup
2 1/4 lb waxy potatoes, peeled and quartered lengthways
3 tbsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley (use leaves and tender stems)

You will need:
An enameled, cast-iron, shallow oven-to-table casserole

TRIM excess fat from the lamb.

HEAT 4 tbsp olive oil in the casserole over medium-high heat. Add the lamb and cook to batches on all sides until lightly browned. Remove the lamb with long tongs and keep in a heatproof dish.

ADD the onions to the casserole and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until softened. Return the browned meat to the pan. Add the bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, and season with salt and pepper. Pour in enough hot stock to just cover the lamb. Bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat and simmer foe 3-4 hours or until the meat is tender, adding more hot stock as necessary. Skim the fat off the cooking juices in the pan.

MEANWHILE boil the potatoes until just tender and drain.

SCATTER the potatoes over the lamb and sprinkle with half the parsley over the lamb and sprinkle with half the parsley,. Drizzle the remaining olive over the potatoes and season with salt and pepper.

PREHEAT the oven to grill/broil 15 minutes before serving. Place in under the grill for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are golden brown. Serve at once with the remaining parsley sprinkled on top.

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STELLA’S HINTS:

• * Ask your butcher to cut the shoulder into roughly 2- 2 1/2 inch chunks.
• Lamb chops can be used instead of shoulder, which will save cooking time.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS

Coconut Lamb With Rice

[Adina H, from Providence in Rhode Island, sent us the following easy to prepare, hearty dish. and the close up photo. CS]

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 1 3/4 lb lamb, diced
• 6 tomatoes, coarsely chopped
• 2 cups coconut milk
• 1 1/2 cups basmati rice
• 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves

Directions

1. Cook lamb and tomatoes in a large frying pan over medium heat for 2 minutes.
2. Pour in coconut milk.
3. Cover and cook for 30-40 minutes until lamb is tender.
4. Drain well and set aside.
5. Add the cilantro.
6. Serve hot on a bed of rice.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy. I did!

CS

Sautéed Lamb with Eggplant

I always liked cooking in a wok and anyone who’s been following this blog knows we like lamb. Here’s an easy recipe that adds a fresh and unusual flavor to lamb:

Photo from web, by: Max Falkowitz (not exactly this recipe)

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound ground lamb
• 2 large eggplants thickly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 6 large tomatoes, blanched, skinned and thickly sliced
• 1 lemon sliced to garnish

Ingredients for the sauce

• 2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped, plus extra to garnish
• 2/3 cup pareve sour cream (I used Tofutti brand Better than Sour Cream)
• black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a wok over high heat until almost smoking. Add the minced lamb and fry until thoroughly browned. Remove from wok and keep warm.
2. Add the remaining oil to the wok and fry the eggplant with the garlic for 10 to 15 minutes until lightly browned on both sides. Add the tomato slices and stir fry for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper, then transfer to a serving dish. Top with the ground lamb and garnish with lemon slices and mint.
3. Sauce. Mix together the mint and pareve sour cream, season with black pepper, serve with the lamb and vegetables.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy! I plan to make this for tonight’s dinner.

CS

Kashmiri Lamb – Rogan Josh

Exotic, delicious, Indian dish with just enough spice to keep it interesting:

Ingredients

• 5 cloves garlic roughly chopped
• 1 0nion roughly chopped
• 1 inch piece ginger root, peeled and roughly chopped
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 lb lamb, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 10 cardamon pods, slightly crushed
• 1 1/4 cups water

Directions

1. Put the garlic, onion, ginger root, ground spices, salt, tomato paste into a blender and pulse until smooth.
2. Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole dish, add the lamb and cardamon pods. Fry over high heat to brown the meat on all sides.
3. Add the blended paste and cook for 5 minutes stirring frequently. Pour in the water and simmer, covered for 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is tender.
4. Serve over rice with some warmed naan bread.

Indian Style Rice

(from: simplyrecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 2 cups long-grain rice
• 8 cups water
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 cloves
• 2 cardamom pods
• One 2-inch piece of cinnamon
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp dark mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/4 tsp chile flakes
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 chopped garlic cloves
• 1/4 tsp turmeric

Directions

1. Place rice in a sieve and run cool water through it to rinse it until the water runs clear. Soak the rice in cool water for 30 minutes. Drain.
2. Bring 8 cups of water and the salt to a boil in a large pot. Add the rice and stir. Add the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon and simmer for 10 minutes. Taste the rice, and test if it is done to your taste; rice can take more or less time to cook depending on how old it is. If still too firm, cook a few minutes longer
3. When the rice is cooked to your liking, drain the rice into a colander and rinse with cold water to stop if from cooking. Remove the cloves, cardamom and cinnamon and discard. Set the rice aside to drain.
4. In a pan large enough to hold the rice, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the mustard and cumin seeds and the chile flakes. Cook until the mustard seeds start popping, then add the onion. Sauté until the onion begins to brown, about 5-7 minutes.
5. Add the garlic and sauté another 2-3 minutes. Add the rice and mix well. Sprinkle the turmeric over the rice and mix well. Cook for another 3-4 minutes, stirring often.

Enjoy, gentle reader, enjoy!

CS