serves
4
prep
4 hours
cook
45 minutes
difficulty
Mid
serves
4
people
preparation
4
hours
cooking
45
minutes
difficulty
Mid
level
Ingredients
- 4 lamb rump, approximately 300 g each
- pinch of Murray River salt and pepper
Farro
- 100 g organic farro
- 80 g almonds, coarsely ground
- 250 ml milk
Sweetbreads
- 8 lamb sweetbreads
- 12 cloves
- 300 ml milk
- 6 black garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 50 g black sesame seeds
- 50 g white sesame seeds
Olive caramel (makes 400 ml)
- 4 kg lamb neck bones
- 15 litres water
- 1 black garlic bulb
- 75 g black olives, pitted
- 100 ml cream (35%)
- 80 g skim milk powder
- 12 heirloom carrots, cooked
- 2 wild fennel fronds
- 12 chickpea shoots
- 12 red mustard leaves
Drink match Vasse Felix Cabernet Merlot 2010, Margaret River, WA
"This is a beautiful dish that balances intense and earthy flavours on the one hand, with the complex interplay of lots of subtle ingredients on the other. Lamb rump would normally crave a big cabernet, but this might just overpower the rest of the dish. So, a variation on the same theme leads us to a medium-bodied cabernet merlot blend from a moderate climate region like Margaret River. Vasse Felix is legendary in the region and this wine combines elegance with pure fruit and lovely soft tannins. It will give work well with the lamb without killing the other flavours in the dish." - Dan Coward
Instructions
Trim the cap (fat) of the lamb rump, leaving a thin layer of fat. Season and place in a vacuum bag. Vacuum on mach 50, place into a pot of hot water, and then cook sous-vide for 45 minutes. Monitor the heat and make sure it stays at 65.4°C. (Alternatively, preheat the oven to 210°C. Sear the lamb in a hot pan. Cook the lamb in the oven for 12 minutes. Let the lamb rest for approximately 8 minutes.)
Once the lamb is cooked, remove from the vacuum packed bag, and sear in a pan until golden.
To make the farro, soak in water for 3 hours, then rinse. Bring a pot of water to the boil, and add the farro. When the farro starts to crack, remove it from the heat, strain and rinse again. Leave to dry on a cloth-lined tray. Place the almonds and milk in a medium-sized pot. Stir over a low heat until it reaches the consistency of porridge. This is called the "crème". Cook the farro in the crème.
Soak the sweetbreads in cloves and milk overnight. Remove from the milk and cloves and wash in cold water. Remove any membrane and cut into small pieces. In a hot pan, sauté until they are golden in colour, taking care not to overcook them. Mix the black garlic with the black and white sesame seeds. Rub the sweetbreads in the sesame and black garlic mix.
To make the olive caramel, start by roasting the lamb neck bones at 220°C in the oven until the fat has rendered and they are evenly roasted. Remove from the oven and place into a large stockpot. Cover the roasted bones with water and cook on 78°C for a minimum of 28 hours, but ideally 42 hours. Do not let this simmer or boil (make sure it does not reduce too much).
Once this is done strain the liquid through a muslin into a second pot with a heavy base. Reduce the liquid by half on simmer. Once this is achieved add the peeled black garlic and the olives.
Reduce by half again and remove from the heat. Add the cream and skim powder and whisk.
Once combined place the warm liquid in a blender and blend for 5 minutes.
To serve, place the cooked carrots on the plate with the farro, and place the sweetbreads on top of the farro. Place the lamb rump on top and carefully pour the olive caramel on top of the lamb. Garnish with the fennel fronds, chickpea shoots and red mustard leaves.
Note
• Store the fennel pollen, chickpea shoots and red mustard leaves in a cloth-lined container with a small amount of moisture in it (do not add water ; it will dilute the flavour and aroma).
Cook's Notes
Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.
