Serves: 4
Difficulty: Medium
Former tennis pro and MasterChef contestant Henri Leconte shares his recipe for this delicious, tender lamb dish. If you’re looking for a classy French recipe to serve up, you need look no further.
IMAGE © SHINE TV
Lamb cutlets with peas, bacon and carrots
Ingredients
- 4 lamb racks – 4 bone French-trimmed (ask the butcher to prepare it)
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Olive oil
- 1 small jar of violet mustard
- 4 rashers of pancetta, cut into lardons
- 3 banana shallots, finely diced
- 1 l dark chicken stock
- 150 g fresh peas, cooked
- 150 g unsalted butter
- 200 g carrots, cut into fine dice and blanched for 1 minute
- 2 baby gem lettuces cut into quarters
- 10 fresh mint leaves, ripped
- 1 tsp finely chopped tarragon leaves
- Fine salt
- Sea salt
- Pepper mill
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Meanwhile, season the lamb well with fine salt.
- Place a heavy frying pan over a medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the olive oil.
- Put the lamb into the pan and colour it all over, turning it so that all sides brown evenly.
- Put the lamb on a roasting tray and brush the meat with the violet mustard, then place in the oven and roast for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove and rest for 5 minutes in a warm place over the stove.
- In another frying pan over a medium heat, add olive oil, the chopped shallots and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the pancetta and lightly colour.
- Then pour the chicken stock to cover the pancetta and shallots. Bring to a simmer and reduce by half. Check the flavour and season well.
- Add the carrots, peas and butter, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Once you get the sauce consistency right, add the lettuce and mint. Let it simmer for 30 seconds and serve.
- Brush the lamb with another thin layer of mustard. Then cut the lamb into 4 cutlets. Spoon the pea, pancetta and carrot mix into each dish.
- Serve 4 lamb cutlets over each, then add some of the sauce to finish.
- Add just a little crush of sea salt over each dish.
Superb!