Spanish Lamb With Sherry Honey Peppers Recipes

SPANISH LAMB WITH SHERRY, HONEY & PEPPERS

Steps:

• Make sure your lamb isn't too damp - pat it dry with kitchen paper if you need to, otherwise it won't colour well. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large casserole dish and brown the lamb over a high heat in batches (if you crowd the pan the meat will sweat and not brown). Remove with a slotted spoon as you go. When all the lamb is browned, add the remaining oil and cook the onion and peppers over a medium heat until the onion is golden and the vegetables are softened. Add the garlic and paprika, and cook for a further 1 min, then add the sherry and bring to a simmer.
• Put all the lamb back in the pan, along with the stock, saffron, sherry vinegar and honey. Season and bring to just under the boil. Turn the heat down, cover the pan and leave to cook very gently for 2 hrs, turning the meat every so often.
• In the last half hour of cooking time, remove the lid so that the sherry and stock can reduce. You want to end up with completely tender meat in a flavoursome gravy - how long this takes will depend on how wide your pan is so you may need to give it longer than 30 mins. Check the seasoning. You're unlikely to need to adjust the vinegar or honey but you might want to sweeten the dish slightly. Scatter the parsley or almonds on top (or use both). Serve with the couscous.

LAMB SWEETBREADS IN A HONEY AND SHERRY VINEGAR GLAZE

Steps:

• Soak the sweetbreads in cold water to cover for 2 hours, changing the water 3 times. Drain and place the sweetbreads in a saucepan. Cover with cold water and add the lemon juice. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Drain the sweetbreads and immediately plunge them into a bowl of cold water. After 3 or 4 minutes, remove and drain the sweetbreads on paper towels. Separate into lobes, with the natural partitions, and remove the tubes and connective tissues. The pieces will be approximately 2 by 2 inches.
• In a large skillet that will hold all the sweetbreads in a single layer, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the sweetbreads, sprinkle them with salt and pepper, and increase the heat to medium high. Cook, without stirring for about 3 minutes, then turn the sweetbreads to the other side. Continue cooking until golden, about 5 minutes more. Transfer them with a slotted spoon to a plate and set aside.
• Add the onion and shallot to the pan and saute for about 5 minutes, until golden. Add the vinegar and sherry, increase the heat to high, and deglaze the pan, stirring and scraping until the liquid has reduced by half. Add the beef broth or veal stock and simmer until again reduced by half, to just under 1 cup. Whisk in the honey and the butter and return the sweetbreads to the pan. Turn them in the sauce until heated through and nicely glazed, and serve immediately.

SPANISH-STYLE LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Warm oil in a large heavy-bottom pot with a lid or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, sprinkle lamb generously with salt and pepper and cook in batches to avoid overcrowding, turning once or twice, until each piece is well browned all over, about 15 minutes total. Transfer pieces to a plate as they brown.
• Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of fat and add onions, bell pepper, garlic and a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions and peppers are softened, about 5 minutes. Add pimentón and stir for a minute. Stir in tomatoes, breaking them into bite-size pieces and scraping browned bits from the pot. Add wine, chicken stock, vinegar and bay leaves and bring just to a boil.
• Return lamb to pot and reduce heat so mixture is bubbling very gently. Partly cover pot and cook, stirring every 20 minutes or so, until lamb is very tender, about 2 hours. Discard bay leaves. Stir in beans and cook another 10 minutes to heat them through. Stir in parsley and adjust the seasoning if necessary.