Recipes for Main Courses... with Cornish Sea Salt
Braised Lamb with Morels and Madeira recipe
Chosen from Mushroom by Johnny Acton & Nick Sandler, this lamb recipe is a lovely way to pair fuller-flavoured autumn lamb with the first of the season's mushrooms.
Serves 6
A leg of lamb
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
150g (6oz) cubed pancetta
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 sticks celery, sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 turnip, diced
400g (14oz) fresh morels
A couple sprigs of thyme
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs rosemary
200ml (7fl oz) Madeira
Method
Season the lamb with salt and pepper, heat the pan up with a little olive oil at the bottom, then lightly brown the lamb all over. Take the pan off the heat and remove the lamb.
Place the pancetta, onion, carrot, celery, garlic ad turnip in the pan in a little extra olive oil and gently fry for 10 to 15 minutes. Add the morels whole and continue to fry for a further 5 to 10 minutes.
Add the herbs and Madeira and a drop of water. Place the lamb on top of the vegetable base and gently push it down so that a few of the vegetables and some of the liquor rise up the sides. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and cover with the lid. Place in the oven at 170°C/325°F/gas 3 for 3 hours, turning the lamb every 40 minutes or so.
When the dish is ready, take the lamb out, skim off any oil from the surface of the sauce, check the seasoning, and then serve the lamb with the sauce and vegetables. This dish is perfect with new potatoes.
RECIPE TIPS
This is an easy and impressive dish, in which the lamb is slow-braised with heaps of morels and root vegetables. All you need to do during the cooking process is occasionally turn the lamb. The ideal cooking receptacle would be a large two-handled cast-iron pan with a heavy lid, perfect for the stove top where the vegetables are fried, and then for the oven where the lamb is gently roasted.
FoodLovers tip: As you can see from the picture, you can also make this dish in the spring with baby vegetables. If you can’t find fresh morels then, use dried, soaked morels instead.
For more mushroom recipes, places to buy mushrooms and information on mushroom foraging, see our Little Green Book - Mushroom Foraging - Uncover The Wild
For more on British Lamb, including places to buy, eat and learn, visit Our Little Green Book of British Lamb