Name: Forequarter of lamb with chickpea cream and fennel salad
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 195 min
Total time: 225 min
Yield: 8
Ingredients: 1 forequarter of lamb (about 2kg), jointed (see note); 400 ml each dry white wine and chicken stock; 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil (¼ cup); To serve: fresh chickpeas, blanched (optional, see note), and lemon wedges; Chickpea cream; 1 kg dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in cold water, drained; 5 garlic cloves; 200 ml hot chicken stock; 150 ml mild-flavoured extra-virgin olive oil; Juice of 1½ lemons; Fennel salad; 2 cups (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley; 1 baby fennel bulb, shaved on a mandolin, placed in iced water until required, drained; ½ Spanish onion, shaved on a mandolin; 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil; 2 tbsp lemon juice; 1 tbsp finely chopped preserved lemon rind

Forequarter of lamb with chickpea cream and fennel salad

Australian Gourmet Traveller recipe for forequarter of lamb with chickpea cream and fennel salad.

Serves 8

Prep

30M

Cook

3H 15M

Total

3H 45M

You’ll need to begin this recipe a day ahead to soak the chickpeas.

Ingredients

1 forequarter of lamb (about 2kg), jointed (see note)

400 ml each dry white wine and chicken stock

60 ml extra-virgin olive oil (¼ cup)

To serve: fresh chickpeas, blanched (optional, see note), and lemon wedges

Chickpea cream

1 kg dried chickpeas, soaked overnight in cold water, drained

5 garlic cloves

200 ml hot chicken stock

150 ml mild-flavoured extra-virgin olive oil

Juice of 1½ lemons

Fennel salad

2 cups (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley

1 baby fennel bulb, shaved on a mandolin, placed in iced water until required, drained

½ Spanish onion, shaved on a mandolin

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp finely chopped preserved lemon rind

Method

Main

1.Preheat oven to 250C. Place lamb in a large roasting pan, pour wine, stock and oil over, season well to taste and roast until starting to turn golden (15 minutes). Reduce oven to 150C and roast, basting frequently, until meat falls from the bone (2½-3 hours).

2.For chickpea cream, combine chickpeas and enough cold water to cover generously in a saucepan (do not salt water), bring to the boil over medium heat, reduce heat to low and simmer until tender, adding garlic in last 20 minutes of cooking (45 minutes-1 hour). Drain, transfer to a food processor and blend until chickpeas break down. Gradually add stock and oil, process to a smooth purée, add lemon juice and 3 tsp salt and stir to combine.

3.For fennel salad, toss ingredients to combine in a bowl and set aside.

4.Spoon chickpea cream onto plates, top with lamb, fennel salad and fresh chickpeas if using. Drizzle with pan juices and serve with lemon wedges.

Ask your butcher to joint the lamb; this makes it easier to serve portions on the bone. Fresh chickpeas are difficult to find; when in season, they’re available from Field to Feast.
This recipe is from the April 2013 issue of
.
Drink Suggestion: Rich Barossa shiraz. Drink suggestion by Max Allen
Notes