Spring Lamb - Recipes from Marc Fosh

The Spanish are justifiably proud of their lamb and springtime is without doubt the best time to enjoy it. The taste is sweeter and more refined at this time of year, before the really hot weather arrives and the lambs start to suffer like the rest of us, and sweat in the heat.

Man has been eating lamb for over 10,000 years and they soon discovered that sheep were not only a good source of food but could provide wool for their clothing, skins for parchment and milk for butter and cheese. The local Spanish breeds are small and sturdy animals and lend themselves perfectly to the long slow cooking favoured by the local restaurants throughout most of Spain, especially the provinces of Castilla-León and Burgos.

Mallorcan-based British chef, Marc Fosh knows how to get the best out of this delicious meat. Cordero lechal, which is basically milk-fed lamb, is most commonly served in the form of ‘costillas' (ribs) or palatillas (shoulders) and piernas (whole legs). They are normally served in whole pieces, roasted over rosemary sticks and garlic cloves in a slow oven for a long period of time until tender.

Many traditional, regional recipes exist and one of the most popular is "Cordero a la Segoviana". A whole side of young lamb is rubbed with salt and oregano. Place this in a large ‘cazuela' (earthenware dish) and smother in pork fat. Crushed garlic cloves, chopped onions and parsley are added together with a small glass of water, another of white wine and a couple of crushed peppercorns. The lamb is then marinated for 2-3 hours before being roasted in a moderate oven for 1-2 hours.

‘Cordero a la Sevillana' is diced lamb fried with mushrooms, garlic and parsley before being finished with white wine and dry sherry. One of my favourite lamb dishes is ‘Cordero a la riojana'. This is a delicious warming stew with potatoes, red peppers, chorizo sausage and white wine from the Rioja wine region.

 ‘Cordero al chilindron', also from the Rioja and Aragon regions of the north is flavoured with garlic and a dried red pepper called ‘Choricero' that needs to be first soaked in water for a few hours so that the pulp can be scraped away from the skin. Choricero pepper puree can be bought in small jars in all Spanish supermarkets making it easy to use but if you can't find it, use a couple of teaspoons of paprika.

Marc Fosh shares a couple of his recipes for spring lamb - the first would be great coooked on the BBQ, and the second ideal for a lunch or dinner with friends.

GRILLED LAMB WITH MOUNTAIN HERBS & GYPSIES SALAD

A simple dish that we sometimes serve at our Tasca de Blanquerna Restaurant in Palma.

Ingredients: serves 4

8 lamb cutlets
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 shallots, finely chopped
1 teaspoon rosemary, chopped
4 teaspoons oregano, chopped
½ teaspoon sumac, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon
60ml Olive oil
Sea salt/Black pepper

Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl and add the lamb cutlets. Marinate in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes. Grill the lamb cutlets over a high heat for 2-3 minutes on each side until they are nice and pink inside. Serve with gypsies salad.

GYPSIES SALAD

2 tomatoes, diced
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
1 red onion, diced
4 dried apricots, chopped
1 yellow pepper, seeded and diced
1 garlic clove, crushed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
Juice of ½ lemon
100g thick natural yoghurt
2 tbsp coriander, chopped
Seasoning

Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl and season to taste.

COCHIFRITO DE CORDERO

Another favourite from the Tasca de Blanquerna Restaurant menu - full of Spanish flavours

Ingredients: Serves 4

800g diced leg of lamb
2 red peppers
1 medium onion
100ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves
200ml lamb stock
2 slices of stale bread
1 tbsp. tomato puree
1 tbsp. sherry vinegar
1 tspn. thyme
2 tspn. paprika
Seasoning

Roast the red peppers in a hot oven until they start to blacken and blister. Remove from the oven, place in a bowl and cover tightly with cling film. Leave for 10 minutes and carefully remove the skin and discard the seeds.

Place the red peppers in a pestle and mortar with the stale bread and garlic cloves. Crush to a puree.

Heat the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan. Fry the diced lamb until its nicely coloured on all sides. Add the chopped onion, thyme and paprika and lower the heat to a gentle flame. Add the tomato puree, lamb stock and cook slowly for 25 minutes. Stir in the red pepper puree and cook for a further 10 minutes. Season to taste and serve with fresh vegetables.