If you really want to make delicious food with loads of flavour but don’t want to spend a lot of time slaving over a hot stove, invest in a slow cooker (or get someone to buy you one for Christmas). This recipe is from ‘200 slow cooker recipes’ by Sara Lewis which we’ve blogged recipes from previously. Steve’s sister bought us the slow cooker last Christmas and we use it regularly. This recipe is for 4 but we doubled the meat to freeze some.
Recipe:
Olive oil
1kg lamb shoulder
1 onion (sliced)
2 garlic cloves (finely chopped)
2 tblsp plain flour
3 tblsp mint jelly
150ml (1/4 pint) red wine
300ml (1/2 pint) lamb stock
Salt and pepper
For the couscous:
200g couscous
150g cooked beetroot (peeled and diced)
1 lemon (rind and juice)
Olive oil
Small bunch of parsley (finely chopped)
Small bunch of mint (finely chopped)
Method:
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Brown the meat on all sides. Remove the meat and add to the slow cooker. (We asked the butcher to debone our shoulder but we added the bones to the stock). Fry the onion for 5 minutes until softened, stir in the garlic and then add the flour and stir well. Add the mint jelly and the wine and stir until smooth. Pour in the stock, season and bring to the boil, stirring. Pour the sauce over the lamb and cook on high for 7-8 hours.
When almost ready to serve the meat, put the couscous in a bowl. Add the beetroot, lemon juice and rind, oil and some seasoning and stir well with a fork. Pour in boiling water until the mixture is just cover and then cover the bowl with cling film. It only takes about 5 minutes for the couscous to cook but you can leave it for a bit longer if you’re not quite ready for it. When the couscous is done, add the mint and parsley and stir well.
Put a bit of couscous in on the plate, add some of the lamb from the slow cooker (it will just fall apart). Use the stock from the slow cooker as a gravy and pour over the meat.
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Optional kitchen porn:
Crockpot slow cooker
The Half-assed Gourmets 