Here is a dish that I did a few weeks ago and finally getting around to posting it. It was a lamb tasting of sorts. I had a few different cuts of lamb and wanted to use some subtle Mediterranean flavors, mainly olives. Believe it or not you can actually get local olives here in Texas. There is actually quite a few olive oil companies that produce some decent olive oils not far from Austin. Thought I didn't use any of the local product this time I have used it in the past. Thought this dish really turned out well with some great contrasts between fatty, braised, and steak like textures. Paired with a few olive sauces and sunchokes. Here is the recipe and I hope you enjoy!
1 Lamb rack frenched
2 tbsp of pink peppercorns coarse grinded
3 tbsp of chopped fresh rosemary
3 tbsp of olive oil
Salt
2 whole lamb breast bone in (2 1/2 lb)
Salt and pepper
1 sprig rosemary
1/2 onion, 1 carrot
5 garlic cloves
8 cups of duck fat if you have it or substitute veg oil if you can't
Sherry onion jam
200 g onion sliced
70 g sherry vinegar
70 g sugar
3 g oil
Salt to taste
2 large lamb shanks
1 onion
2 leek tops
1 garlic bulb
1 sprig rosemary 2 fresh bay leafs
4 carrots
2 stalks celery
Bones from belly
1/2 bottle red wine
Stock or water to fill (2 qt)
1 Tbsp of olive oil
1 tbsp of cornstarch and 1 tbsp of water
Sunchoke purée
1 lb sunchokes peeled and large diced
1 cup cream
Salt
Sunchoke fondant
1 lb of sunchokes peeled and Use small cutter to cut small rounds.
2 cups of chicken stock or veg stock
1 sprig of thyme and 2 tbsp of butter
1 lemon juiced
Olive nage
60 g onions
100 g castelvetrano
75 g poblano
8 g garlic clove
450 g whey
95 g white wine
125 g cucumber juice
2 tsp water and cornstarch
Few sprigs basil
100 g pitted beldi olives
150 g water
Pinch of xanthan gum
For the lamb belly confit,
Season the boned in lamb breast aggressively with salt and pepper. Add onion, garlic, and rosemary and let it cure overnight. The next day drain off any blood and place all of the ingredients in a pot, including the carrot. Cover with duck fat and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to low and let it gently cook for 3-4 hours or until it is tender. ( you can also place it in a 275 degree oven and let it cook 3-4 hours ). Once the meat is tender and cook let it cool to room temperature. Then carefully take it out of the oil and place on sheet pan lined with a parchment paper. Now the bones should be extremely easily to take out of the breast, so go ahead and debone it. Then take another parchment paper and place on top. Place another sheet pan on top of that. Find a brick or a really heavy object that can be refrigerated (canned items) and weigh down the breast overnight. The next day take the breast out and cut into small blocks. Set aside until ready to cook
For the lamb shank,
Season the lamb shank with salt and pepper. In a pressure cooker add 1 tbsp of oil and turn on medium high. Sear the shank for a few minutes on each side then add all of your vegetables and herbs. Cook for another minute and then add your wine. Cook for 2 minutes and then add your stock or water. Place the lid on the pressure cooker and bring to high pressure. Cook for 45 minutes and then let the pressure release naturally. Take the shanks out and cool for 3 minutes . Meanwhile strain all the braising liquid off into another small pot. Reduce the broth down to 3 cups, season with salt, and thicken with cornstarch slurry. Cook for another 5 minutes and then strain through fine mesh sieve. While the sauce is reducing go back to your shanks and shred all the meat off the bone, discarding the fat and bones. Take a large piece of plastic wrap flat on your countertop. Then take your shredded meat and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place your shredded meat on the bottom part of your plastic wrap. Then roll the meat up into a tight log. Poke holes in the plastic wrap randomly to allow air pockets to escape. Tighten each end of the meat log and tie with twine. Place in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours to set.
For the Sunchoke Puree,
Place peeled diced sunchokes into a small pot with cream and a tsp of salt. Bring to a simmer and then cover and turn down to low. Cook for 15-17 minutes or until tender. Strain off cream and reserve. Place sunchokes into a vita mix and puree until smooth. Add a little of the cream if the puree is too thick. Adjust the seasoning if need be and strain through a tamis. Set aside and keep warm.
For the Lamb Rack,
Preheat oven to 375
Drizzle lamb rack with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Then generously season with salt, rosemary, and coarse pink peppercorn on both sides of the rack. Then in a medium hot pan add the remaining olive oil. Then place the rack meat side down in the pan. Sear for 2 minutes without burning the herbs or peppercorns. Then turn over and place in the oven for 9-10 minutes. Then take out and let the rack rest.
For the Sunchoke Fondant,
Place the cut out rounds of sunchokes into a small pot. Cover with chicken stock, lemon juice, thyme, a tsp of salt. Bring to low simmer where the stock is barely moving and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes until just done. Then strain out and reserve the liquid and keep the pot empty. Let the sunchokes dry and cool completely. Then take 1/2 cup of oil and bring it up to 335 degrees for frying. Place the sunchokes into the fryer and brown lightly. Then strain out the sunchokes and place them in the empty pot. Continue until all are fried and in the pot. Then add a 1/2 cup of the chicken broth you simmered the sunchokes in to the pot. Turn on high, add the butter and reduce the liquid until there is almost nothing left. Keep warm.
For the Onion jam,
In a medium saute pan on high heat add oil and sliced onions. Cook for 10-15 minutes caramelizing the onions. You might need to turn down the heat a bit so they don't burn. Then add your vinegar and sugar to the onions. Cook until there is just a little bit of liquid left in the pan. Then season the onions with salt and set aside.
Beldi Olive puree,
Place olives and water into a blender. Puree until smooth and then add a pinch of xanthum gum to thicken slightly. If it is too watery add another pinch. Strain through a fine mesh strainer and place in a squirt bottle.
For the olive nage,
In a small sauce pan on medium heat add 1 tbsp of olive oil, onions, poblano, garlic, and castelvetrano olives. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Then take the lid off and deglaze the pan with white wine. Reduce the wine by half and then add whey and cucumber juice. Bring to a boil and then turn down and simmer for 10 minutes. Then add your cornstarch slurry and cook for another 5 minutes. Then pour everything into a blender and add basil leaves. Puree until smooth and strain through a fine mesh strainer. Adjust the season with salt if needed.
To finish,
In a hot saucepan add your breast with a tsp of duck fat. Cook on both sides until golden brown. Place your Lamb rack back in the oven to warm up (3 min). Take your shank log and slice into rounds. Sear in the same pan as the breast on both sides. Then take out your breast and place on a paper towel. Then add a few ladles of sauce and cover until the shank is warm all the way through. Then spoon some of the olive nage on the plate. Add the sunchoke puree. Then add shank on top of the puree. Slice the lamb rack and place next to the shank. Add the breast confit with onion jam. Finish with the sunchoke fondant, beldi puree, some more lamb jus, and some rosemary flowers. Serve and enjoy!
