I never thought I liked lamb until I moved to Ontario, but it was only because I'd never had local lamb, only the stuff from New Zealand. Now, no offence to NZ lamb, but if your food is travelling approximately 14,000 km, then how good can it really be (this is a rhetorical question, I'm sure I've had food that's travelled this far and enjoyed it). So if you live in a place where they have local lamb (usually at your butcher or farmer's market, not the grocery store), then try it, maybe you'll like it, if you don't already.
Here is a recipe for lamb skewers and chick pea salad, adapted from our grilling cookbook:
Yoghurt Marinade
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 cup plain yoghurt (I used Greek)
2 tbsp heavy cream
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp chopped fresh mint
1/4 tsp ground chilies
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Set aside to infuse until ready to use.
(our mint was a little limp at this point, but still good)
Marinate 1 1/2 lbs lamb (ask for cut up pieces of stewing lamb) in the yoghurt mixture for 2 to 4 hours at least. Keep in the fridge while marinating.
Thread onto skewers while you're preheating the grill. (Inside tip, take the marinated lamb out of the fridge for a bit before you start putting them on the skewers otherwise they are so cold, it is like doing one of those pain threshold tests with the cold water.)
Grill on a greased BBQ, for about 10 minutes, then flip (they will probably stick even if you've greased the grill, but persevere), and cook for another 10 minutes.
Try the skewers with this chick pea salad:
1 can chick peas
1/3 cup olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
juice from 1/2 lemon
handful of fresh Italian parsley, chopped
pinch of paprika
salt and pepper
Combine all ingredients and let sit for a few hours and serve with the lamb.
Very tasty!
Very tasty indeed!
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