Italian
Good Food Everyday
From
Good Food Everyday
season
1
episode
3
Farm 88 Lamb Backstraps with Artichokes and Capers
With
Gary Mehigan
Seared lamb backstrap with artichokes, capers, prosciutto and peas. Italian weeknight.
SERVES
4
About this recipe
Lamb backstraps seared rare and rested, then sliced over a warm pan of marinated artichokes, capers and prosciutto loosened with white wine and chicken stock. Frozen peas finish the dish bright green. Italian weeknight, with the loud flavour notes doing the heavy lifting.
Backstrap (the eye of the loin, the most tender cut on the lamb after the tenderloin itself) is the right choice for fast cooking. Lean, fine-grained, almost steak-like in texture, it cooks in three to four minutes total at high heat and needs nothing more than salt, pepper and a hot pan. Cooked beyond medium-rare it dries out fast; the resting after searing is what holds the juices in.
The pre-marinated artichokes (drained from a jar) are the shortcut that makes this a weeknight dish. The acid in the marinade (lemon, vinegar, olive oil) has already brightened the artichokes and given them their characteristic Mediterranean tang; using fresh artichokes here would mean an hour of trimming and parcooking that pulls the dish out of weeknight territory.
Prosciutto sliced thin and crisped slightly in the pan adds salt and texture; capers add brine and a slight pop; white wine and stock reduce together into a quick pan sauce. Frozen peas thrown in at the last minute stay bright green and slightly sweet against the salty backbone. Slice the rested lamb across the grain into 1cm pieces, fan out over the warm vegetable mix. Crusty bread alongside; a glass of cold Vermentino.
Ingredients
- 2 Tasman Farm 88 Lamb Backstrap
- 2 170g jar of Marinated artichokes, drained in a colander.
- 1 tbsp Capers
- 4 Spring Onions
- 90g of Prosciutto, sliced into thin strips
- ¼ cup White Wine
- ¼ cup of salt reduced Chicken Stock
- ½ cup chopped Parsley
- 1 cup of frozen Peas
- 1–2 tbsp Olive Oil
- to taste Salt and Pepper
Method
1. Cut the Farm 88 Lamb Back Strap across the grain into 2 cm wide strips.
2. Heat oil in a fry pan or casserole dish over high heat and cook the Lamb stirring until nicely coloured, – season with salt and freshly ground Black Pepper, then remove from the pan and keep warm. As you are going to add the Lamb back into the pan with the other ingredients it is important to not cook the Lamb all the way through during this first part of cooking just give it a good brown, otherwise when you add it back into the sauce it will over cook and be tough.
3. Add a little more oil to the pan if needed and when hot add the Spring Onions and Prosciutto, fry until the Spring Onions are softened. Add the Capers and heat through then add the Wine and the Stock, add the Artichokes and the Peas and simmer to reduce the sauce down by half.
4. Add the Lamb (and any juices from the Lamb) back in and let it warm through with the sauce for a few minutes giving it all a good mix to combine the flavours. adjust as needed.
5. Lastly scatter over some of the chopped Parsley, giving it a mix so that it combines through the sauce and then serve in a bowl garnished with a little more Parsley.
6. Pauls Notes:
7. I like to serve this on little oven roasted potato squares. That way you get some crunch from the potato and the sauce also soaks into some of the potato which is delicious. Alternatively, you could serve it over some good crusty bread for a similar result.
8. I love this dish for two reasons…actually three reasons. Firstly, its simplicity of ingredients and flavours. Secondly, its simplicity of being a one pot dish. And thirdly, it is simply delicious!
Gary Mehigan
Gary Mehigan spent eleven seasons as a judge on MasterChef Australia before turning his attention to the road. He hosts Around the World on Two Plates and Good Food Everyday, cooking through markets and family kitchens from Spain to Sri Lanka. His own kitchen instinct sits in classical French technique with a forensic eye for produce.
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