For me, the start of spring heralds one thing: lamb, lamb and more lamb. I love the stuff, especially in early spring when it’s really young, the flavour is light and fragrant, and the meat so tender.
In some respects, meat this delicate needs little cooking or added flavour. One of the best ways is the classic, perfectly pink roast leg of lamb — studded with garlic, anchovies and rosemary. The combination of outer char, medium pinkness, umami from the anchovies and the aromas of the garlic and rosemary takes some beating. I did a recipe for this in my column last year, which can be found on the Sunday Times website.
This year, I decided to look at some different cuts and take inspiration from around the world. Europe, particularly the Mediterranean, really does justice to lamb. Mallorcans cook it very slowly with plenty of vegetables, until the meat falls off the bone. This produces a sticky, rich sauce, but the cleanness of the lamb still comes through.
Greeks have kleftiko, a similar dish made with leg and shank, as well as souvlaki or, as most of us know them, kebabs. Turkey has a similar tradition — go into any ocakbasi (grill restaurant) and you’ll find lamb kebabs in every guise.
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But I can’t do a springtime lamb column without including a recipe for the pink roasted version, using the best end of neck, roasted medium and sliced into cutlets. Served with grilled spring vegetables, braised peas and mint, you can’t get much more seasonal than this.
Roast rack of lamb with charred lettuce, leeks and peas with mint
Lamb cutlets cooked medium rare with charred vegetables — the ultimate springtime dish.
Serves: 2 very hungry people
Preparation: 10 mins
Cooking: 25 mins
4 tbsp olive oil
1 x 550g rack of lamb with 8 bones
3 heads of baby gem lettuce, cut in half through the core
4 baby leeks (or spring onions), cut in half widthways
250g petits pois (I prefer frozen to fresh)
200ml chicken stock
15 mint leaves, thinly sliced
1. Heat the oven to 230C. Heat a pan until scorching and add 2 tbsp of the oil. Season the lamb, then brown all over. Pop it in the oven and roast for 15-17 minutes for medium rare. Once cooked, remove from the oven and cover with tinfoil. Leave for 10 minutes and reserve all its juices for later.
2. Heat a griddle pan on high. Place the lettuce and leeks in a mixing bowl, toss with the rest of the oil and season with salt and pepper. Chargrill the vegetables all over, then set aside.
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3. In a larger pan, add the petits pois and cover with the stock and some seasoning. Bring the peas to the boil and simmer for 2 minutes. Add the charred vegetables and braise for another 5 minutes. The stock will reduce a little. Pour in the juice from the lamb and add the mint leaves at the very end. Cut the rack of lamb into two and serve on top of the pea, leek and lettuce broth.
Gizzi’s top tip: ask your butcher for French-trimmed rack of lamb — the meat and fat are cut off, exposing the rib bones, making it look clean and stylish
Lamb and aubergine kofta
Proper Turkish home cooking for a brilliant weeknight supper.
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Serves: 4
Preparation: 30 mins
Cooking: 40 mins
2 small onions, grated
1 green pepper, deseeded, grated
1 small bunch of parsley
1 small bunch of mint, leaves only
1½ tsp paprika
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
1½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp grated nutmeg
1½ tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp tomato purée
800g lamb shoulder, finely minced (you can ask your butcher to do this)
50g toasted pine nuts, chopped
2 aubergines — go for thinner ones, each sliced into 6 and salted
To serve
Yoghurt
Turkish chilli sauce (Tukas is a good brand)
Shredded salad
Flatbread
1. Grate the onions, then squeeze out the liquid through a sieve. Grate the green pepper and do the same. Place the onions and pepper in a large bowl. Finely chop the parsley and mint leaves, and add to the bowl. Mix with the spices, tomato purée and 1½ tsp salt to make a paste.
2. Mix in the meat and pine nuts. I like to leave it all to marinate for an hour or two, but you can use it straightaway if needed. Shape into 12-15 meatballs, then take 4 skewers that have been soaked in water and thread on the meat and aubergine slices, alternating as you go.
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3. Heat a frying pan, griddle or barbecue, greased with oil. Cook the kebabs on a low heat (the aubergine will take about 20 minutes) until charred and brown on all sides, and cooked through to your liking. Eat immediately with the flatbreads and yoghurt.
Mallorcan slow-roasted lamb shoulder
Somewhere between a roast and a stew, this one-pot meal is easy to make. Pair with roasted rosemary, potatoes and garlic.
Serves: 4-6
Preparation: 15 mins
Cooking: 6 hours
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2.25kg good-quality shoulder of lamb, bone in
3 tbsp olive oil
1 bulb of garlic, halved
3 onions, thinly sliced
1 handful of fresh rosemary
2 fresh bay leaves
1 handful of fresh thyme sprigs
3 carrots, peeled and halved lengthways and widthways
2 sticks of celery, each cut into 3
1 large leek, trimmed, halved lengthways, then cut into 3
4 small vine-ripened tomatoes, halved
1 bottle of Spanish red wine
1. Heat the oven to 230C. Rub the oil and plenty of seasoning into the lamb, then place in a large baking dish. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the outside is well browned. Remove and reduce the heat to 160C.
2. Using two forks, remove the lamb from the baking dish and set aside. Place all the vegetables and herbs into the dish, then put the lamb back on top. Pour the whole bottle of red wine over it all, then cover the dish in tinfoil. Put the lamb in the oven and slow-roast for 6 hours, or until the meat is falling off the bone and the vegetables are soft and sticking together.
3. I like to whip off the foil and serve it altogether with roast potatoes and garlic, or boiled, waxy potatoes with shedloads of salt and extra-virgin olive oil.
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