Spring Lamb Dinners

New Zealand Listener, Volume 41, Issue 1051, 16 October 1959, Page 22

Spring Lamb Dinners

AST week we discussed spring vegetables, particularly as- _ paragus and green peas. Now we must consider lamb. It seems a pity to do anything fancy with spring lamb, which has its own delicious taste and just needs roasting in the usual way. It isn’t so expensive either-even the smallest bits of forequarter are delicious eaten cold with a spring salad. Nevertheless, people do need suggestions for other methods of cooking lamb (especially for small families) and for less expensive joints than the loin chops, legs and forequarters. Stuffed Neck and Breast Get the, butcher to bone it. Make a -mint stuffing thus: Two cups soft bread crumbs, 44 cup butter, 4% cup minced onion, % cup finely minced mint, ™% teaspoon pepper, 34 teaspoon salt. Combine and moisten to a paste with a beaten egg. Dust the meat with a little pepper and salt, lay the stuffing on the flat end and roll it up, fasten with skewers. Dust with a little flour:and put in roasting pan, preferably on a rack, with a little fat smeared on, fat in the pan and a little hot water. Have the oven hot (regulo 7 or 8, or 400 degrees) for the first few minutes, then reduce heat and cook slowly, about 20 minutes to the pound. Make gravy as usual. Pot Roast Shoulder Have the shoulder boned and rolled; brown it in beef dripping in suitable saucepan. Add 2 or 3 sliced onions, 112 cups sliced carrots, 3 or 4 cloves, 1% teaspoon peppercorns, 2 teaspoons salt, 1%, teaspoon pepper, 2 cups boiling water. Cover and cook gently until meat is tender (21% to 3 hours). Thicken the gravy as usual, being sure to pour off most of the fat. Neck and Breast Stewed This is the basic recipe for stewing lamb the Greek way. Take 2 Ib. or more of the breast of lamb. If you can have cutlets, too, the "eye" of these is particularly good. Cut meat into pieces, fry them lightly in butter and put them in the saucepan. In the same frying pan fry 2 or 3 sliced onions and add these to the meat in the saucepan with salt, pepper, a little stock and a squeeze of lemon juice. Some. fresh tomato puree may be added, but this is optional. Cover the saucepan and simmer gently till lamb is tender, about an hour. Very young and tender broad beans may be added in their shells when the lamb is put into the saucepan, or young French beans topped and tailed, and just broken in two, or young peas and mint leaves or even spinach which has been steamed for a few minutes. Fresh Lamb Balls This makes a meal for 4 persons from % lb. boned lamb ‘shoulder, 3 young carrots and 1 peeled small onion put through the mincer. Add 1 teaspoon salt, 4% teaspoon pepper, and 1 beaten egg. Mix thoroughly, shape into small balls and roll in a little flour. In a ;

shallow saucepan melt 2 tablespoons fat, -:ciek.. oes. 2 tablespoons _ salad oil and saute

meat balls in this until browned all over. Add 1% cup good clear soup, put lid on pan and simmer very slowly for about 10 minutes. Remove meat balls to a hot dish and keep hot while you make the gravy thus: Add 2 tablespoons flour to the fat in» the pan and cook till brown and smooth, then add about 34 cup.more of good clear soup, stirring constantly. Cook until the gravy thickens. Pour it over the meat balls and serve with vegetables. : Individual Lamb Roasts Take 2 lb. boned breast of lamb, remove cartilage, etc. and cut into 4 or 5 pieces, then sprinkle with 12 teaspoon salt and 2 teaspoons dried powdered mint. Roll each piece up like a jellyroll and tie. Brown well in a pan, using hot fat (2 tablespoons). Then add 1% cup water and 2 teaspoons salt. Simmer slowly, covered, for 1% hour. Now add 4 medium sized onions, cut in halves. Simmer another 45 minutes. Spdon off any fat, add 5 medium sized potatoes, halved lengthwise, and 4 or 5 carrots cut in 44 inch slices. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons salt and add 11% cups water. Cook, covered, about 4% hour or until properly tender. Remove meat, potatoes and carrots to a hot dish and keep hot. Sprinkle lemon juice over carrots: Mix 5 teaspoons flour with 3 tablespoons water and add to liquid in pan. Cook until thickened, stirring. Add 2 teaspoons picallili pickle. Pour over meat and serve. Makes 4 or 5 servings. Devilled Lamb Neck Cook 114 Ib. neck of lamb, cut in slices about 3% inch thick with a cupful of sliced onions in 2 tablespoons fat or salad oil over low heat, for about 20 minutes. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1 teaspoon dry mustard and 2 cups water. Cover and simmer slowly till tender, about an _ hour. Thicken gravy. Serve with mashed or new potatoes and sprinkle when serving with a little finely chopped parsley. Lamb with Asparagus Cook in boiling water until almost tender (not more than 5 minutes) 2 cups fresh asparagus cut in 1 inch pieces. Have ready, in a heavy frying pan or shallow saucepan 4 tablespoons hot fat or oil, 1 teaspoon salt and a dash of pepper. Into this hot fat put 1 Ib. lean lamb cut into slices % inch thick. Add 2 tablespoons onion and 1 clove of garlic all finely diced. Cook this over moderate heat, stirring consthntly about 10 minutes until lamb is cooked through. Add cooked asparagus and 24 cup beef bouillon. Also add 3 small tomatoes cut into quarters (you may have to use preserved ones). Cook again about 2 minutes over a moderate heat. Thicken with 1 tablespoon cornflour mixed with a % cup water and 2 teaspoons beef essence mixed with hot water. When thickened, the dish is ready. Should be served with hot boiled rice.