The first of these three recipes is slow-braised lamb with its own gravy. Anchovies add a gloriously savoury tang. Serve with roast potatoes and a green vegetable dish.


Serves 6

Prep 10min
Cook 3 hours

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Whole shoulder of lamb on the bone, about 1.8kg
2 fat garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
3 or 4 stalks of rosemary, leaves removed and chopped
100ml red wine vinegar
8 large or 10 medium anchovy fillets, finely snipped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Heat the oil in a large casserole dish, then brown the meat all over. Remove the meat and add the garlic and rosemary. Stir well, then add the vinegar. Bubble on a high heat for a minute, then add 150ml cold water and bring to the boil. Season, then return the meat to the pan. Baste, then cover: either with a lid not quite firmly on or with a short sheet of double foil, leaving a few centimetres uncovered.

Cook in the oven for two hours, basting a few times. Then remove the cover and add the anchovies to the liquid, stir well (they dissolve into the sauce) and return to the oven. Increase the heat to 200C/390F/gas mark 6 for a further 30 to 40 minutes. Stir and season if necessary. Carve and serve with sauce and vegetables.



Recipes from A Cook’s Tour of Scotland: From Barra to Brora in 120 Recipes, by Sue Lawrence, published by Headline at £20; available from BooksFirst for £18, including p&p, on 0870 1608080.

Explore Food & Drink

• Gordon Ramsay

• Heston Blumenthal

• Recipes

• Wine

• Real Food

• Anjum Anand

• Eating Out

• Video Recipes

Times Recommends

• How to season a wok
• Chicago Rib Shack hits back at its critics
• Gordon Ramsay: Indian barbecue