Noon in Provence
Art Print
Colclough, Susan...
Buy at AllPosters.com

La Belle Cuisine - More Main Dish Recipes

   Fine Cuisine with Art Infusion

"To cook is to create. And to create well...
is an act of integrity, and faith."

Provençal Leg of Lamb with
Fennel and Scallions

“In my kitchens, a dish always begins with a product, never the other
way around; I never decide I want to do a certain kind of dish and
then look for the ingredients with which to compose it. The product
determines its own destiny.”
~ Alain Ducasse, in 'Flavors of France'

Recipe of the Day Categories:

   Recipe Home

   Recipe Index

   Appetizers

   Beef

   Beverage

   Bread

   Breakfast

   Cake

   Chocolate

   Cookies

   Fish

   Fruit

   Main Dish

   Pasta

   Pies

   Pork

   Poultry

   Salad

   Seafood

   Side Dish

   Soup

   Vegetable

   Surprise!

Provence
Art Print
Soulayrol,...
Buy at AllPosters.com
 

The Provence of
Alain Ducasse

Your patronage of our affiliate partners supports this web site.
We thank you! In other words, please shop at LBC Gift Galerie!

How to Treat Lamb
The New York Times, April 3, 2002
By Alain Ducasse

(This is the sixth of eight columns by Alain Ducasse... written with Florence Fabricant.)

You often see chefs make dozens of little slashes into a leg of lamb and then force slivers of garlic into each one. It horrifies me. That's no way to treat a piece of
meat. With lamb, garlic is essential, but it should perfume the meat. Garlic is
the very essence of Provence, but you must play it off against herbs, tame it a
bit, not force it on the lamb.
I take some crushed cloves and good olive oil and let the lamb bask in this mix-
ture for a couple of days. I do this regardless of whether I'm preparing baby lamb,
which you can find starting about now, or older spring lamb.
It's worth trying to find baby lamb, but you must also know how to cook it. More mature lamb should be medium-rare so it remains tender. But naturally tender
baby lamb is better done medium. It's a pale meat, and my rule is that the lighter
the meat, the more cooking it needs. That's why, in general, veal and pork both require more cooking than lamb or beef. Once the lamb is ready to roast I mas-
sage it with thyme and savory. I know that rosemary is often paired with lamb
but you have to be careful because it's strong, and in the roasting pan it can
burn. You can add a little at the very end.
After browning the lamb I roast it on a bed of cut-up lamb trimmings to help concentrate the pan juices. When the lamb is done, it must rest for about half
an hour, and you can use that time to simmer the pan juices to make a nice,
simple sauce. (Use a wet basting brush to wipe down the inside of your sauce-
pan, so you can incorporate the tasty remnants that collect as the sauce cooks.)
I like to serve scallions and fennel with the lamb, and, if I have them, fresh shell
beans like favas. I blanch thick slices of the fennel, sauté them and then season
them with my lovely lamb jus and some Parmesan. They need to bake 20 minutes
or so, but make for a fragrant and flavorful vegetable component to your dish.
It's all you need.
You find fennel most often used with fish but it should not be overlooked for
lamb. I think it's absolutely superb, and so Provençal besides.”
 

Provençal Leg of Lamb with
Fennel and Scallions

Time: 2 1/2 hours, plus 2 days' marinating
Yield: 8 servings

1 leg of lamb, preferably spring lamb,
boned, about 5 pounds
1 tablespoon paprika
 3/8 cup extra virgin olive oil
7 large cloves garlic, smashed
1 bunch thyme or savory, or 1/2 of each
1 1/2 pounds lamb neck, in 2-inch chunks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 large bulbs fresh fennel
2 bunches scallions, trimmed,
leaving 1-inch of green
1 cup chicken stock
1 sprig rosemary
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan.

1. Lightly score fat on lamb; rub with paprika. Place  1/2 cup olive oil
and 5 cloves garlic in bowl that will hold lamb snugly. Place lamb
in bowl, turn to coat sides, and cover by placing sheet of plastic
wrap directly on meat. Refrigerate 48 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove lamb from bowl. Discard the
garlic. Reserve 4 branches herbs. Use the rest to rub lamb all over,
inside and out. Tie lamb at 1 1/2-inch intervals with butcher's cord.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in heavy ovenproof casserole that will hold lamb comfortably. Brown leg of lamb on top of stove on all sides. Remove
from casserole. Place pieces of lamb neck in casserole, season with salt
and pepper, place leg of lamb on top, place in oven, and roast 1 hour
for medium-rare for 5- to 5 1/2-pound roast. Add 15 minutes for 6- to
7-pound roast. Instant-read thermometer inserted in center should
register 120 degrees F.
3. While lamb is roasting, trim fennel: cut a  /2-inch slice off the bottom
of each bulb and cut off branches down to the bulb. Slice bulbs in
four vertically. Use wooden skewers or toothpicks to hold the layers
together. Bring large pot of salted water to a boil. Blanch fennel about
3 minutes. Drain, remove skewers and set aside.
4. Heat remaining oil in heavy skillet. Lightly brown fennel slices on each
side. Place fennel slices, slightly overlapping, in shallow baking dish.
Lightly brown scallions and place around fennel.
5. Remove lamb from oven and place in shallow baking pan tented with
foil, 30 minutes or up to 1 hour. Transfer contents of casserole to
saucepan. Deglaze casserole with chicken stock and add to saucepan.
Bring contents of saucepan to a simmer. Peel remaining garlic and add,
along with the reserved herb sprigs and rosemary. Simmer gently 30
minutes. Strain, return to saucepan, degrease and season with salt and
pepper. Spoon 4 tablespoons sauce around fennel and scallions in
baking dish.
6. Turn oven to 400 degrees F. Pour any juices accumulated around
lamb into saucepan. Remove foil from lamb and place in oven in
baking pan. Dust the fennel and scallions with Parmesan. Place
in oven; bake 20 minutes.
7. Remove lamb from oven, snip cord, and cut in slices. Arrange on
warm platter. Drizzle a little of the sauce over it. Remove fennel
and scallions from oven and serve with lamb and remaining sauce
on the side.

Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company Used with permission.
 

Featured Archive Recipes:
Butterflied Leg of Lamb
Grilled Lamb Chops with Warm Tomato-Mint Vinaigrette
Lamb and Eggplant Potpie with Feta Potato Crust
Lamb and Vegetable Orzotto
 

Index - Main Dish Recipe Archives
Daily Recipe Index
Recipe Archives Index