Our First Fresh Lamb Dinner. There is nothing better!

There seemed to be a lot of local lamb at the market today.  I’m wondering if at the end of summer the lambs are being harvested.  I bought an inexpensive cut of lamb leg steaks and some sweet green peppers.  An easy dinner of curried lamb was on my menu.  Looking like a nice, elderly, bag lady I buy at the local Pay n Pak and trundle my goodies home in a pull behind wheeled bag.  I always buy too much for the bag and end up with the odd head of lettuce and mustard bottle peeking out from between almost closed zippers.

Home at last and feeling a ‘bit peckish’ (local slang for hungry) I quickly unload the newly purchased food onto the counter and start the stove heating.  Olive oil in the bottom of the pan I brought the sliced onions and pepper and the minced garlic and ginger to a sizzling, popping temperature, while I chopped the lamb into 1 inch cubes.  Tossing in the lamb bits, quickly flipping the pieces about I covered the pan and scurried about the kitchen searching for the chicken broth. Not finding it I went back to sprinkling about 2 tablespoons of hot curry powder on the lamb mixture, tossed it some more, covered it and rushed off to find the chicken broth.  Distracted by putting some of the tinned goods in the cupboards I spent about 5 minutes abandoning the sizzling lamb.  Finally finding the chicken broth I poured a cup onto the lamb causing an uproar of steam and popping liquid. I quickly plopped on the cover and turned off the stove allowing the lamb stew to simmer on the residual heat of the electric burner. Voila’ dinner was ready to be accompanied by brown rice, broccoli and mango chutney when Phil returned home.  20 minutes before we ate I started the lamb simmering and quickly steamed the broccoli.  Accompanied by a NZ red wine it was wonderful.  The extra broth I put in the left over rice to be eaten the next day with another meat or fish as curried rice.

Now I understand why people take pictures of their food. Still feels a little bizarre though.

Once we are settled in our new home I will prepare lamb broiled or BBQ'd.  But my favorite is to simmer a shank, Spanish style, for a few hours in white wine with lots of garlic and cracked black pepper.