Trio of lamb with nettle purée, cherry gel and salsify crisps

Not yet rated

This impressive lamb recipe by Norbert Niederkofler may appear daunting, but when broken down each element of the recipe is relatively simple and well worth the effort in order achieve the spectacular finished dish.

First published in 2015

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Lamb ribs

Lamb shoulder

  • 400g of lamb shoulder
  • 65g of carrots
  • 65g of celery
  • 65g of onion
  • 500g of lamb stock
  • fresh rosemary
  • fresh thyme
  • 50g of clarified butter

Lamb loin

  • 120g of lamb loin
  • 50g of clarified butter

Nettle purée

  • 200g of nettles, cleaned
  • 50g of potatoes, cut into cubes
  • 30ml of cream
  • nutmeg
  • salt
  • freshly ground black pepper

Salsify cream

  • 200g of salsify root, washed and peeled
  • 500ml of cream

Fried salsify

  • 200g of salsify root, washed and peeled
  • oil, for frying

Salsify chips

  • 100g of salsify root
  • flaky sea salt

Cherry gel

  • 500g of cherries, washed and pitted
  • 3g of agar agar

Tarragon mayonaise

  • 20g of mustard
  • 50g of egg yolk
  • 5g of white wine vinegar
  • 400g of rapeseed oil
  • 100ml of olive oil
  • fresh tarragon

Equipment

  • Sterilised bottle
  • Chamber sealer
  • Water bath
  • Vacuum bags
  • Steam oven
  • Hand blender
  • Mandoline
  • Food mixer
  • Deep-fryer
  • Squeezy bottle
  • Blender

Method

1
Begin by marinating the lamb ribs. Rub the ribs all over with the salt and place in a vacuum bag. Store in the fridge for 48 hours to marinate
2
Preheat a water bath to 65°C
3
Wash the salt from the ribs and place them into a fresh vacuum bag. Seal in a chamber sealer and cook in the water bath for 24 hours
4
Preheat the oven to 140°C/gas mark 1
5
To prepare the lamb shoulder, heat a medium pan over a high heat and lightly brown the lamb. In a separate pan, lightly brown the vegetables, then transfer to the pan with the meat. Add the stock and fresh herbs and cook in the oven for 4 hours
  • 400g of lamb shoulder
  • 65g of carrots
  • 65g of celery
  • 65g of onion
  • 500g of lamb stock
  • fresh rosemary
  • fresh thyme
6
Once cooked, remove the shoulder and cut into 4 portions, about 4x4cm in size. Pass the lamb sauce through a fine sieve into a clean pan and reduce to a sauce-like consistency. Keep warm until ready to serve
7
Preheat a water bath to 68°C
8
For the lamb loin, place the loin in a vacuum bag and seal in a chamber sealer. Cook for 7 minutes in the water bath, then allow to stand for about 10 minutes
  • 120g of lamb loin
9
For the nettle purée, blanch the nettles in boiling salted water then refresh in iced water. Place in a blender, blitz to a fine purée then pass through a fine sieve
  • 200g of nettles, cleaned
10
Preheat a steam oven to 100°C
11
Place the potatoes in a vacuum bag and steam in the oven for 50 minutes
12
Pass the potatoes through a sieve then place in a food mixer. Mix the potatoes and nettles until well combined then add the cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Store in the fridge until ready to serve
  • 30ml of cream
  • nutmeg, to taste
  • salt, to taste
  • freshly ground black pepper
13
To make the salsify cream, bring the cream to the boil in a pan and add the salsify. Simmer until cooked through then drain, reserving the cream
  • 500ml of cream
  • 200g of salsify root, washed and peeled
14
Blitz the salsify in a blender, adding the cream little by little until you obtain a smooth consistency. Season with salt and transfer to a squeezy bottle
15
Preheat a deep-fryer to 180°C
  • oil, for frying
16
To make the fried salsify, cut the salsify into 10cm long cylinders. Fry in the deep-fryer until golden brown. Season with sea salt and set aside until ready to serve
  • 200g of salsify root, washed and peeled
17
Preheat the deep-fryer to 140°C
18
To make the salsify chips, cut the salsify into thin slices using a mandoline or electric slicer
  • 100g of salsify root
19
Deep-fry until crisp and golden then drain on kitchen paper. Season with sea salt
  • flaky sea salt
20
For the cherry gel, blitz the cherries in a blender then pass through a fine sieve. Place the cherry juice in a small pan and reduce by half. Add the agar agar and mix until fully combined
  • 3g of agar agar
  • 500g of cherries, washed and pitted
21
Allow to cool, then blend with a hand blender until you obtain a smooth gel. Refrigerate until ready to serve
22
To make the mayonnaise, first make the tarragon oil. Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over a low heat for 2 minutes. Place the tarragon inside a sterilised bottle and using a funnel, pour over the warmed olive oil and seal immediately
  • fresh tarragon
  • 100ml of olive oil
23
Blend the mustard and egg yolks with a hand blender, add the vinegar and slowly emulsify the oil until you obtain the correct consistency. Season with salt and pepper
  • 400g of rapeseed oil
  • 20g of mustard
  • 50g of egg yolk
  • 5g of white wine vinegar
24
Heat the clarified butter in a medium pan and fry the lamb shoulder until caramelised all over. Keep warm
  • 50g of clarified butter
25
In a separate pan, fry the lamb loin in clarified butter until caramelised
  • 50g of clarified butter
26
To serve, swipe the nettle purée on a serving plate and top with the fried salsify, salsify cream and salsify crisps. Place a portion of lamb loin and a piece of shoulder on one side
27
Spoon over the lamb sauce and dot around the cherry purée. Place the lamb ribs on separate plates with the tarragon mayonnaise
First published in 2015

By only using ingredients grown and produced in the nearby Dolomite mountains, Norbert Niederkofler gave birth to a cooking philosophy famous across Italy.

Get in touch

Please sign in or register to send a comment to Great British Chefs.

You may also like

Load more