A good friend of mine once described Greek food as tasting like "prehistoric Italian". This was one of the dishes that led to that pronouncement. A plate of linguine with a rich meaty sauce is comfort food, to be sure, but the use of lamb and sweet spices clearly took the dish outside of his comfort zone. It's squarely in my own, and has been in pretty heavy rotation this winter in my kitchen. Using a pressure cooker this can be made in under an hour. If you don't have a pressure cooker it'll probably take the greater part of two hours' simmering to get the meat to fall off the bone. One taste will show that it's time well spent. If you want to make a quick version you could substitute ground lamb for the shank. It won't be as rich, but it will cut the cooking time down to about half an hour.
(Serves two with leftovers or three without).
1 meaty lamb shank
2 onions, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
4 carrots, chopped
28oz can crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tsp ground coriander
scant 1/4 tsp cinnamon (or one stick)
1/4 tsp allspice
pinch ground cloves
oil for frying
1/2 lb linguine
Brown shank in heavy bottomed pot with a pinch of salt and pepper. Add onions and carrots, and fry until onions are nearly translucent. Add garlic and fry for a minute more. Add tomatoes and spices. Thin down with a little water (6-8oz). Bring to a simmer and cover. Reduce heat to just maintain simmer. Stir every 15 min or so, to keep from sticking to the bottom of the pot. You may need to thin it down with a little extra water as it cooks if it starts getting too thick (which would make it burn). When the meat is nearly falling off the bone bring pasta water to a boil and cook pasta until just before al dente. Remove bone from sauce, break up the meat. Drain pasta and sauce it with just over half the sauce for a minute over low heat until pasta is al dente. Plate the pasta and top with remaining sauce. Serve immediately. You can tart it up with finely chopped parsley or grated cheese to garnish.
I would pair this with a rustic red wine (think dark fruit and medium to heavy body) and a salad. (If rustic reds aren't your thing a restrained Bordeaux is an easy to find choice that would pair equally well).
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3 comments:
Sounds like a fantastic recipe. Do you think this could be done with lamb shanks as well? Thanks.
Deanna,
The recipe is for lamb shank. I've done it using lamb neck stew meat, too, but picking out all the little bones is a pain.
Also, for a change of pace you could replace the sweet spices with a sprig of fresh rosemary, which would result in a more Italian version. I do that sometimes to mix it up.
Thanks for the response I actually meant to say lamb necks but I guess senility settles in after midnight! It sounds delicious all the same.
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