Lamb stew with spring vegetables

Stage 14, Saint-Gaudens – Plateau de Beille: Gabriel marvels at the beauty of the Pyrenees and seeks out some local delicacies in the wonderful St. Girons market. He visits a cheese maker of the region and learns the secrets of the best Pyrenees cheeses. In the kitchen, top French chef Philippe Mouchel prepares a classic dish of lamb stew with vegetables, called navarin d’agneau printanier.

• serves

  4

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 30 g butter
• 1 kg (roughly) deboned lamb shoulder or neck, cut into 50 g pieces
• 1 medium carrot, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 3 ripe tomatoes, diced
• 3 cups chicken stock
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 bouquet garni, made up of a few sprigs of parsley, 2 sprigs of thyme and 1 bay leaf
• salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 8 baby carrots
• 8 small turnips
• 200 g shelled peas
• 8 small onion
• 8 baby potatoes
• chopped parsley

Instructions

Preheat oven to 150°C.

Heat a little oil and butter in an oven-proof casserole and brown the lamb pieces on all sides for a few minutes. Add the diced carrot and onion and stir for 2 minutes. Stir in the flour to coat the meat well, then add the tomatoes and stir for 1 minute. Add the stock, garlic and bouquet garni. Mix well and season with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid and cook in preheated oven for about 2 hours.

Meanwhile, steam the baby carrots, turnips, peas, small onions and potatoes.

When the meat is tender, add the vegetables, stir well and reheat. Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.