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Five Hour Confit of Lamb

Five Hour Confit of Lamb

Serves: to serve 8 - 10

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Cook Time: 5 Hours

Ready In: 5 hrs 20 mins

ingredients
6 - 8 stalks - rosemary

6 - 8 stalks - thyme

6 - 8 - sage leaves

  - exotic peppercorns

½ teaspoon - curry powder

  - olive oil

  - sea salt

6 lb - leg of lamb

3 lb - potatoes

2 - onions

2 - complete heads of garlic

6 oz - duck (or goose) fat

1 pint - Chardonnay wine

directions
  1. Start by putting half of the herbs (rosemary, thyme and sage leaves) in a mortar with the "exotic" peppercorns (just try to find something a little more exciting than plain black peppercorns!) Add the curry powder and about 1 teaspoon of olive oil and a pinch of sea salt. With the pestle, crush the herbs well and mash them to reap the full flavour of their essential oils.
  2. Place the remaining herbs in a large Dutch Oven (cast iron cooking pot). Check the size of your lamb because, depending on the size of your pot, you may need to cut the bone at the tip. If so, don't throw away the cut off portion of bone; place it at the bottom of the pan to add more taste. Peel and chop the onions in quarters and add these to the pan, separate the cloves of garlic and add these to the pan (no need to peel them) along with the duck fat.
  3. Either on a griddle or in a large skillet, brown the lamb quickly on all sides. Then, using your hands, spread the herb paste over the whole joint, massaging it well to help the meat absorb the flavours. Place the lamb in the casserole on top of the herbs.
  4. Peel the potatoes and cut them into rounds about ¼" (6mm) thick. Rinse them well to remove any excess starch then lay them in the pan, around and on top of the lamb. Season with sea salt and "exotic" pepper and drizzle a little olive oil over the top.
  5. Pour the Chardonnay over the whole ensemble, cover with a lid and cook in a preheated cool oven (Mk 1 - 275ºF - 140ºC) for 5 hours (you can safely forget about it until you need it!)
  6. Remove the roast from the pot and (keeping it warm) place it on a rack to drain for 10 minutes. Slice or simply rip the meat (it will be as tender as butter). Drain the potatoes in a colander and serve together with the lamb, a piece of onion and (if you have garlic fanatics amongst your guests) the garlic cloves, which will be soft and very tender inside their skins.