Name: Tony Bilson: Confit of lamb shoulder
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 525 min
Total time: 545 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 1 lamb shoulder (about 1.5kg), trimmed, cut through the bone into 8 pieces (see note); 350 ml veal stock; 100 gm canned chopped tomatoes; 2 thyme sprigs, plus 2 tsp finely chopped; 1 fresh bay leaf; 30 gm softened butter; 30 gm Dijon mustard; ½ garlic clove, finely chopped; 1 tbsp olive oil; 6 cherry tomatoes, halved; 4 baby turnips, trimmed, halved, scrubbed; 1½ bunches thick asparagus, trimmed; 12 sugar snap peas, trimmed; Seasoned salt; 2 juniper berries; ½ star anise; 2 garlic cloves; 45 gm sea salt; 1 tbsp each finely chopped thyme and marjoram; ½ fresh bay leaf, crushed

Tony Bilson: Confit of lamb shoulder

Australian Gourmet Traveller recipe for confit of lamb shoulder by Tony Bilson.

Serves 4

Prep

20M

Cook

8H 45M

Total

9H 5M

Using a method similar to that employed for confit of duck, this tender lamb dish is a winter winner – try it with a Bordeaux or Penfolds Cellar Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2006.

Ingredients

1 lamb shoulder (about 1.5kg), trimmed, cut through the bone into 8 pieces (see note)

350 ml veal stock

100 gm canned chopped tomatoes

2 thyme sprigs, plus 2 tsp finely chopped

1 fresh bay leaf

30 gm softened butter

30 gm Dijon mustard

½ garlic clove, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil

6 cherry tomatoes, halved

4 baby turnips, trimmed, halved, scrubbed

1½ bunches thick asparagus, trimmed

12 sugar snap peas, trimmed

Seasoned salt

2 juniper berries

½ star anise

2 garlic cloves

45 gm sea salt

1 tbsp each finely chopped thyme and marjoram

½ fresh bay leaf, crushed

Method

Main

1.Preheat oven to 90C. For seasoned salt, coarsely grind juniper and star anise in a mortar and pestle (1 minute), then transfer to a bowl. Bruise garlic in a mortar and pestle, add to spices with remaining ingredients, mix well to combine.

2.Rub seasoned salt all over lamb pieces and place in a large roasting pan. Add veal stock, tomato, thyme sprigs and bay leaf, cover with foil and cook until very tender (6-8 hours, or overnight). Remove lamb from pan and set aside. Strain cooking liquid through a fine sieve into a saucepan and simmer over medium-high heat until reduced by half (5-6 minutes).

3.Increase oven to 130C. Combine butter, mustard, garlic and chopped thyme in a bowl and brush thickly over lamb. Place lamb in a single layer in a roasting pan, roast for 30 minutes, increase oven to 200C and roast until crisp (7-8 minutes).

4.Just before serving, heat olive oil in a small frying pan over high heat, add cherry tomatoes, cut side down, and cook until just caramelised (1-2 minutes), set aside and keep warm. Blanch remaining vegetables until just tender (2-3 minutes for turnips, 1-2 minutes for asparagus, 1 minute for sugar snap peas), drain and keep warm. Serve lamb hot drizzled with sauce, with cherry tomatoes, asparagus, turnips and sugar snap peas.

You’ll need to ask your butcher to cut the lamb shoulder into pieces for you.
This recipe is from the July 2010 issue of
. Drink suggestion by Tony Bilson
Notes