Lamb spare ribs Chinese style

 
 

I have done Lamb Spare Ribs before but found them to be a bit fatty.  So I went for a different method this time.  It worked.

 

Ingredients:

 

Lamb Spare Ribs

Braising liquid – 6 cups water, 1 cup Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing), 2 tablesp soy sauce, 1 star anise, 2 tablesp sugar, 1 cinnamon quill

1 chilli

½ tsp Sichuan peppercorns

To coat before final frying – Char Sui Sauce, cumin, soy sauce, fish sauce & lemon juice.

 

Method:

 

Braise the spare ribs for 1-2 hours in the braising liquid

 

Take the ribs out and let them cool.

 

Coat the ribs with the char sui sauce etc (or your favourite glaze).

 

Fry – in a hot pan – as hot as you dare.

Lamb Shoulder Chops with Lemon & Basil

 

 

So this dish is a little less rustic than my usual.  I hope you like it.

 

Ingredients:

Lamb shoulder chops

Oil for frying

 

For Marinade:

Garlic oil

Basil

Lemon juice

Salt/Celery salt

Pepper

 

For sauce:

As per marinade plus some cream (and some sugar or maple syrup if it's too lemony for your taste)

Method:

Put the marinade ingredients into a plastic bag and mix them around.  Add the lamb and then massage the marinade into the lamb – leaving it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Heat your oven to low/moderate.  Heat your frying pan to screaming hot and then sear the chops for a couple of minutes on each side – doing one or two at a time so the pan stays hot.

Transfer to your oven dish, cover with foil and finish in the oven.  If you like your lamb a little pink this won't take long.

Deglaze your pan with lemon juice, add cream and the remains of the marinade (I had to add more ingredients – it might have been better to marinate in a bowl).

I tasted the sauce which had a nice consistency but was mouth puckeringly sour – and I like sour – so in went a splosh of maple syrup.  It was still lemony but less overpowering.

Lamb chops with a Golden Syrup/Balsamic Glaze

I hope you enjoy these Lamb Chops with a Golden Syrup/Balsamic Glaze.

First heat your pan with some oil and butter in it.  Then put some rosemary and sage onto a plate (fresh would be best but I used dried) with some salt and pepper.  Push your lamb chops onto this mix so it will hopefully form a bit of a crust when you cook them.

Fry your chops on each side for 4 minutes or so – ie until they are cooked to your liking – we like ours just a hint of pink.

Put your chops onto a warm plate loosely covered with foil to rest.

While that is happening make your glaze.  Melt 25g of butter in a saucepan and add to it 2 tablespoons of golden syrup (could be maple syrup) , 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.  Bring it quickly to the boil and then simmer it for 3 minutes. Stir it from time to time. 

To serve just drizzle the glaze over the top and then add a scattering of chopped spring onions.

Rack of Lamb with Mustard Sauce

The inspiration for this Rack of Lamb with Mustard Sauce came from a Martha Steward recipe I found online – but I'm 'channelling' her because, of course, I didn't do it as per her recipe.

What you'll need:

Rack of lamb – preferably spring lamb

Oil for searing

Salt and pepper

For the sauce:

White wine – I used a sauvignon blanc

Chicken stock – I used a concentrated pase

Dijon Mustard

Hot English Mustard

Maple Syrup

Pomegranate juice

Salt/pepper

Cream

Martha's recipe called for pomegranate molasses – which I didn't have but I substituted the pomegranate juice and the maple syrup.

The first step in cooking the lamb is what will make the most difference to the outcome – let it come to room temperature before cooking – if your fridge is really cold like mine this could take over an hour.

Heat your oven to a moderate to low temperature.

Then heat a pan up til it is smoking, add the oil and sear the lamb on both sides until it has a nice colour – about 1 minute on each side should do it.  Make sure you've got your extractor on or your smoke alarms will go off!

Pop the lamb into a roasting pan with a smidgen of the wine, cover loosely with foil and cook it in the oven for about 20 to 30 minutes depending how pink you like it. 

While this is cooking, pour any excess oil out of your pan and put it back on the heat (moderate this time) and add your white wine – about a quarter of a cup.  Stir with a wooden spoon so all the brown bits stuck on the bottom come off into the sauce.

Add in your chicken stock and mustard.  Whisk it while adding so that there are no lumps.  Add a couple of teaspoons of maple syrup and about ½ a small box of pomegranate juice (be careful to taste as you go because it is quite sour).  Then simmer it quite quickly so that the sauce reduces to a thick glossiness.  Take it off the heat, taste to see what salt and pepper is needed.  If it's too sour add more maple syrup.  If it's too sweet add more pomegranate juice.  Finish with a good splash of cream and stir through.

The resulting lamb was gloriously tender and the sauce was unctuous – tasting not of mustard or of pomegranates but as something in its own right.

Lamb Shanks with Chinese overtones

I have previously done lamb shanks here.  But for some reason it's a couple of years since I've given them a go again.

This version played with Chinese flavours.  What I used:

2 lamb shanks

Oil for browning – I used mustard/chilli/garlic oil

Chinese cooking wine (or sherry)

Soy sauce

Brown sugar

Tomato paste

A little bit of chopped fresh rosemary

½ cup of home made stock

Salt and pepper

1 lonely Brussel sprout

1 stalk of celery

1 carrot

Method:

Heat a casserole dish on the hob (one that can go in the oven and is also ok on the stove top).  Put in your oil.  Brown the lamb shanks.

Add your Chinese cooking wine – and stir to get any stuck on bits off the bottom.

Then add soy sauce, brown sugar (a couple of tablespoons) and the tomato paste.  Add your stock.

Put the lid on and cook in a moderate oven turning now and again.  After about an hour add your chopped carrot, finely diced rosemary, finely peeled and chopped celery and the finely sliced Brussel sprout.

You could add any vegetable you have hanging about in the fridge – which is how the Brussel sprout got there.  The only vegetable that I think is a must have is carrot because it goes so well with lamb.

Serve when just about falling off the bone.  Very hearty and satisfying.

Lamb Spare Ribs Chinese Style

I have done Lamb Spare Ribs once before but found them to be a bit fatty.  So I went for a different method this time.  It worked.

Ingredients:

Lamb Spare Ribs

Braising liquid – 6 cups water, 1 cup Chinese cooking wine (Shaoxing), 2 tablesp soy sauce, 1 star anise, 2 tablesp sugar, 1 cinnamon quill

1 chilli

½ tsp Sichuan peppercorns

To coat before final frying – Char Sui Sauce, cumin, soy sauce, fish sauce & lemon juice.

Method:

Braise the spare ribs for 1-2 hours in the braising liquid

Take the ribs out and let them cool.

Coat the ribs with the char sui sauce etc (or your favourite glaze).

Fry – in a hot pan – as hot as you dare.