Lamb Salad With Mint And Pomegranate Recipes

WARM SHREDDED LAMB SALAD WITH MINT AND POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.
• On the stovetop, brown the lamp, fat-side down, in a large roasting pan. Remove when nicely browned across its middle (you won't get much more than this) and set aside while you fry the shallots, garlic and carrot briefly. Just tip them into the pan - you won't need to add any more fat - and cook them, sprinkled with the salt, gently for a couple of minutes. Pour the water over and then replace the lamb, this time fat side up. Let the liquid in the pan come to a boil, then tent with foil and put in the preheated oven.
• Now just leave it there while you sleep. I find that if I put the lamb in before I go to bed, it's perfect by lunchtime the next day. But the point is, at this temperature, nothing's going to go wrong with the lamb if you cook it for a little less or a little more.
• If you want to cook the lamb the day you're going to eat it, heat the oven to 325 degrees F and give it 5 hours or so. The point is to find a way of cooking that suits you: you know what sort of pottering relaxes you and what makes you feel constrained; how much time you've got, and how you want to use it. Don't let the food, the kitchen or the imagined expectations of other people bully you.
• With the homily over, about 1 hour before you want to eat, remove the lamb from the pan to a large plate or carving board - not that it needs carving; the deal here is that it's unfashionably overcooked, falling to tender shreds a the touch of a fork. This is the best way to deal with shoulder of lamb: it's cheaper than leg, and the flavor it deeper, better, truer, but even good carvers, which I most definitely am not, can get unstuck trying to slice it.
• To finish the lamb salad, simply pull it into pieces with a couple of forks on a large plate. Sprinkle with more sea salt and some freshly chopped mint, then cut the pomegranate in 1/2 and dot with the seeds from 1 of the halves. This is easily done; there's a simple trick, which means you never have to think of winkling out the jeweled pips with a safety pin ever again. Simply hold the pomegranate 1/2 above the plate, take a wooden spoon and start bashing the curved skin side with it. Nothing will happen for a few seconds, but have faith. In a short while the glassy red, juicy beads will start raining down.
• Take the other 1/2 and squeeze the preposterously pink juices over the warm shredded meat. Take to the table and serve.
• What I do with the leftovers is warm a pita bread in the microwave, and then spread it with a greedy dollop of hummus, then take the chill off the refrigerated lamb in the microwave and stuff the already gooey pita with it. Add freshly chopped mint, black pepper and whatever else you like; raw, finely chopped red onion goes dangerously well.

LAMB SALAD WITH MINT AND POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 140°C/gas mark 1.
• On the hob, brown the lamb, fat-side down, in a large roasting tin, remove when browned across its middle and set aside.
• Add the vegetables into the roasting tin you browned the lamb in, sprinkle with the salt and cook them gently for a couple of minutes.
• Pour the water over and then replace the lamb, this time fat-side up, let the liquid in the pan come to a bubble.
• Make a tent with tin foil and put in the preheated oven overnight
• About an hour before you want to eat, transfer the lamb from the tin to a large plate
• Just before serving, pull it to pieces with a couple of forks and transfer to a serving dish.
• Sprinkle with more Maldon salt and some freshly chopped mint.
• Cut the pomegranate in half and remove the seeds from one of the halves.
• sprinkle over the lamb.
• Squeeze the juice of the other half over the lamb.
• Serve with green salad and couscous or quinoa.

WARM SHREDDED LAMB SALAD WITH MINT AND POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 140C/ gas mark 1.
• On the hob, brown the lamb, fat side down, in a large roasting tin. Remove when nicely browned in the middle (you won't get much more than this) and set aside while you fry the vegetables briefly. Just tip them into the pan - you won't need to add any more fat - and cook them, sprinkled with salt, gently for a couple of minutes. Pour the water over and then replace the lamb, this time fat side up. Let the liquid in the pan come to a bubble, then tent with foil and put in the preheated oven.
• Now just leave it there while you sleep. I find that if I put the lamb in before I go to bed, it's perfect by lunchtime the next day. But the point is, at this temperature, nothing's going to go wrong with the lamb if you cook it for a little less or a little more.
• If you want to cook the lamb the day you're going to eat it, heat the oven to 170C/ gas mark 3 and give it 5 hours or so. The point is to find a way of cooking that suits you.
• About an hour before you want to eat, remove the lamb from the tin to a large plate or carving board; not that it needs carving: the deal here is that it's unfashionably overcooked, falling to tender shreds at the touch of a fork. This is the best way to deal with shoulder of lamb: it's cheaper than leg, and the flavour is deeper, better, truer, but even good carvers, which I most definitely am not, can get unstuck trying to slice it.
• I get on with the vegetables while the lamb's sitting meekly, but you could equally well have done this earlier. But to finish the lamb salad, simply pull it to pieces with a couple forks on a large plate. Sprinkle with more salt and some freshly chopped mint, then cut the pomegranate in half and dot with the seeds from one of the halves. This is easily done; there's a simple trick, which means you never have to think of winkling out the jewelled pips with a safety pin ever again. Simply hold the pomegranate half above the plate, take a wooden spoon and start bashing the curved skin side with it. Nothing will happen for a few seconds, but have faith. In a short while the red glassy, juicy beads will start raining down.
• Take the other half and squeeze the preposterously pink juices over the warm shredded meat. Take to the table and serve.

LAMB BRAISED IN POMEGRANATE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Generously season lamb chops with salt and black pepper.
• Heat vegetable oil in a Dutch oven over high heat. Place lamb chops in Dutch oven and cook until browned on all sides, about 8 minutes. Transfer lamb to a plate and reduce heat to medium.
• Stir onion and a pinch of salt into the Dutch oven; cook until onions are slightly golden, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• Pour pomegranate juice into the Dutch oven and scrape any browned bits off of the bottom of the pot. Pour in balsamic vinegar, increase heat to high, and bring to a boil.
• Stir rosemary, mint leaves, and red pepper flakes into pomegranate juice mixture. Continue to boil until liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes. Return lamb and any accumulated juices to Dutch oven, spoon pomegranate mixture over lamb, and cover.
• Cook in the preheated oven until meat is fork tender, about 2 hours. Transfer lamb to a plate and set Dutch oven on the stovetop over high heat. Bring pomegranate mixture to a boil; cook, skimming any fat that accumulates, until liquid is reduced by 1/3, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in honey and season with salt and black pepper to taste. Return lamb to the Dutch oven; stir to combine. Garnish with pomegranate seeds, sliced mint leaves, and pumpkin seeds.

SLOW-ROAST PERSIAN LAMB WITH POMEGRANATE SALAD

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. In a small bowl, mix the molasses with the cumin, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic. Scatter the onion over a casserole dish or a deep roasting tin. Place the lamb on top of the onions. Pour the glaze over the lamb. Rinse the bowl out with about 200ml water, then pour it around - not over - the lamb.
• Cover the dish with a lid or the tin with a large piece of foil. Roast the lamb, undisturbed, for 3 hrs, then remove the lid or foil and continue to roast for 30 mins to give the lamb colour. When the lamb has had its time, pour off the juices, remove as much fat as possible, then pour the juices back over the lamb.
• Just before serving, gently toss all the salad ingredients together. Serve the lamb with its sauce, the salad and some warmed flatbreads.