Spiced mutton (or lamb)

The Boy and I went to Brixton Farmers' Market a few weeks ago and he was very excited because we brought back a mahosive piece of mutton leg. We've only had mutton once or twice before and I really liked it, so this was a bit of a win. The Boy was particularly excited and a bit disappointed when it disappeared into the freezer for a couple of weeks. We both like our food, but that piece of meat was as big as my head! 

So the week before I headed out to Nairobi, we had some friends over in order to eat the mutton. It's such a perfect winter's dish and so I really recommend it. I know that in the UK, mutton can be a bit harder to find. Try your local butchers or farmers' market- they should be able to order it for you if you don't have it. You can also try it with lamb- just make sure to adjust the cooking times.

For my non-UK friends, I hear on the grapevine that at least in the US, not a lot of lamb is eaten because it's too gamey. Seriously guys- this has to change. Sheep is one of the most delicious things to eat. I actually think mutton has softer flavour than lamb- most of the show is in the texture so it might be a good place to start, but again it might be difficult to source. 

You will need: 

Mutton leg (or lamb)

Handful of cardamom, shelled

A tablespoon of paprika

A generous sprinkling of sea salt

2 large garlic cloves

A tablespoon of cumin

400g dried flageolet beans (soaked the night before) or a 400g tin

1 bottle of white wine

1 savoy cabbage

And here are the Boy-written instructions:

"

1. shell the cardomom
2. add seeds to garlic, cumin, and paprika and grind together
3. Heat pan and brown mutton all over, leave to cool.
4. Rub the spice mix into the mutton
5. throw the chopped onion and 2/3 wine into a deep casserole dish (le cruset) and add the mutton (Kat: then drink the rest of the wine)
6. Throw into a preheated oven (140 degrees C) for two hours.
7. take out and add the beans to the sauce and cook for another 40mins or so (if using tinned beans, cook the sauce for 35 mins and then add the beans for 5 mins to heat through)
8. Take the mutton out to rest and reduce the sauce bean mix if required
9. cook some savoy cabbage to go with

"

As always, the Boy's food disclaimer is involved!

It's the perfect dish for Sunday afternoons, and works with other types of beans and green vegetables so it's a great dish to experiment with.

The Boy is taking advantage of my absence to cook foods I hate. Tonight, it's apparently hearts in sherry sauce. Just don't tell him how much goat I've eaten out here!