Highly Decorated Lamb
I didn't intend for the lamb to be this pretty. But when you bring together fantastic ingredients and sit over a plate for twenty minutes trying to figure out the plating, you come to something eventually. Fancy plating belies it's difficulty. (Spoiler alert; It's easy) Grilled Welsh lamb with honey caramelized figs and carrot, with a carrot puree, sweet stemmed cauliflower, and roasted goose fat potatoes. Recipe follows.
Ingredients (for 2)
2 Lamb Leg Steaks, trimmed, room temp
1 Bunch Sweet Stem Cauliflower
2 Figs, halved tip to tail
Clear Honey
6 Baby Waxy Potatoes, halved
Goose Fat
1 Orange Kumara, peeled and diced
6 Carrots, leaves set aside (four peeled and diced, two peeled and halved lengthways)
100ml Cream
1 White Onion, peeled and finely diced
1 Teaspoon of Smoked Paprika
6 Cloves of garlic, peeled
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Method
Preheat oven to 230 C.
In a large pot, add the four diced carrots minus leaves with a generous lug of olive oil. To it, add the onion. Fry the carrots on a medium heat until soft. Every five minutes add a splash of water. We want to soften the carrots so they're mushy, and a vibrant orange - basically caramelizing them. Once they can be broken with a fork, add the kumara.
Cover with water, add the paprika and garlic and simmer until the kumara is very soft. Keep the water topped up throughout. Once the kumara is tender blend thoroughly into a very smooth, loose puree. Add the cream then return to the stovetop. Reduce on a low heat, stirring occasionally. The target is a very thick puree that holds peaks. Get it to near that stage before moving on. It's the most forgiving of all.
Boil the halved baby potatoes until just tender. Drain and set aside to cool. Once cool, toss in a tablespoon of goose fat until well coated. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper - they're now ready for the oven. We'll do a few more things before then so we get the timing right.
In a non-stick pan or cast iron skillet, bring a coating of oil to a medium low heat. Brush the cut side of the figs with a generous amount of honey, then place them cut side down on the frying pan. Do the same with the carrots. Saute gently for five minutes, then flip everything, very gently. Let the figs wilt skin side down. The juices with start to bubble up through the middle when ready and the carrots will be just tender. (about 20-25 minutes)
After they've been sauteing for fifteen minutes, put the potatoes in the oven and blast roast them for ten minutes. During the potatoes cooking, Get out a second frying pan. Dry and the lambs steaks with a paper towel, lightly salt and then fry to your liking. Set aside to rest.
Make sure your puree is hot and seasoned.
Boil a kettle of water and blanch the cauliflower stems for one minute and drain.
Take everything off the heat and the potatoes out of the oven. Slice the lamb steaks into palatable strips and plate it all up. Plate how you see fit, express yourself! (just make sure the puree is generous!) Garnish with washed carrot leaves, salt, pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.
Enjoy!
