Lamb Stew

I made a tasty lamb stew yesterday at work with lentils and barley, zucchini, tomates, onions and garlic. It was the brainchild of one of the staffers. It was perfect for a nippy winter day. I didn't have my camera with me so I don't have a photo but I found this one on the web to get you started.


Catch yourself a nice spring lamb if you can. If not, jam over to the market and buy some already de-sprung. A pound and a half of loin cut. Cook your lentils and barley (1 cup each) in two different saucepans because they fight and argue if you mix them. Mostly in your intestines but they will disagree unless you separate them. One cooks faster than the other; barley is the de-caffinated (slower to cook) one so give it 20 minutes simmering. I used little orange lentils for the other and they took only 5 minutes to cook. Drain and reserve aside. You don't have to put them in separate bowls anymore because the boiling hot water took all the life out of their argumentativeness.



Why, Orange lentils are so cheery looking don't you agree? (little ugly doll not included in box)



Chop up your lamb (1 1/2 lbs) in bite sized pieces, something that would fit on your spoon with room for the other ingredients, and salt your meat [this is not where the term Salt Peter originated BTW] (I use kosher salt on my sacri-fish-el meats because the Cooking Bible told me so) and set it aside.

Chop up 1 1/2 cups of onions and mince about 4 garlic cloves real tiny. Or not. Basically, its how small you want it right? I like garlic so I would chop them the size of the lentils. What we're looking for here is stuff that is chopped in a consistant size. Why you ask? Because we're anal about little things like that. Let's move on here without too many questions shall we?

Take a big skillet and heat it up. Add about 2-3 Tablespoons of oil and get that nice and hot, not global warming hot,



and add the meat to sear it (you took the globe out first right?). It should sizzle when added. Cook it up till its all cooked and removed it to a bowl while you do the next step.




Saute the onions (chopped small remember) in the fun fond that is left from the sprung lamb, moving and stirring them to pick up all the pieces of what's left on the bottom of the skillet. Then add the garlic and as soon as you can smell the aroma of the heavenly goodness that is garlic shut off the stove run out of the house and give prayerful thanks from the rooftops for garlic. Okay, don't shut the stove off. Keep right on going....you can do it, I just know you can.

Add 3 cups of chicken broth and 3 tablespoons of sherry and 3/4 cup of water to the onions and garlic and bring it to an easy sleezy simmer. It should look way better than this photo below. If not, you've done something regrettably wrong and should get the hell out of a kitchen you moron.


Moving on. Add the meat, lentils, barley and smally chopped zuchini and tomatoes. I used 3 zuchini and 1 large tomato [all still chopped to that insy binsy size] to the whole she-bang. Let it cook 10 minutes and Presto! You have something to eat that didn't cost too much and should feed about 6-8 guests. Serve with a nice Central Coast Syrah or a bottle, box or jug of your favorite crapola. I really don't care.


The point is - a heart meal that I could dish up for you on my blog along with my side dishes of sarcastic humor. Job Done.

Bull in a China Cabinet

Today in our Advanced Garde Manger class I had a little misunderstanding. With the Chef. Oh Boy. First day of class.

We're working in teams and FINALLY I have my best teammate, Phil to work with. I'm happy. We are all working on foods that will be presented in our restaurant on Friday's Grand Buffet. This means lots of smoked proteins, pate's, gallantines, ballantines and terrines. Google them if you want to know what they mean. Its late here and I'm not in the mood to keep typing descriptions.

Okay. Perfect example of where my mindset was today. (the previous suggestion to google). I was making 5 gallons of poultry brine whilst my buddy Phillip was deboning 4 poussin (the smallest chickens). Both of us were busy, busy, busy. I had made 1 gallon of brine when someone said I needed to make more. Well, the Chef had written 5 gallons on the board but it looked like a spelling for "poultry brine - sugar" We do put brown sugar in the brine along with salt and I wondered why he mentioned sugar so clearly but just got busy with my chores. Anyway, I was annoyed when I had to begin the process all over again, but got busy making what I needed to do.

I cooked both brines and chilled them with ice and had to leave the 4 pounder on the stove to cool while I began frenching lamb chops to put in a meat brine. (terrible shame. They should be heaped with garlic, rosemary, salt and olive oil and grilled)

Anyflay, I heard someone ax where the Poultry Brine was and I pointed to the stove and told them which pot it was in. About 15 minutes later someone else axed me where the brine was. Again, I said "over here, on the stove, that big pot". 20 minutes later I got another soundout with someone axing where the flippin' freakin' brine was so I said "Its in the same place it was the last time you asked me! Right here on the stove". As I said the last sentence I turned to see who was speaking so I could send a dagger beware glare and locked eyes with the Chef!! Some in the class were making those Oooohhh noises like you give out when someone disses someone really good. I quickly turned back around and said to myself "OH SHIT". I saw his face and it wasn't an "A" grade face. He even rolled his eyes and stuff. OMG.

After I changed my diapers, I collected myself and went over to the Chef and apologized telling him I don't know his voice yet and he sounded like a student so I just answered sarcastically since I'm not familiar with his voice yet. I told him it was the 3rd time I was asked about the brine.

Holy cow. What a close call. I definitely now know the sound of the Chef's voice. Absolutely.

350 Degrees Challenged

Its been about 10 months now living in the "indoor campsite" and I'm getting starved for the use of an oven. I have to make do with store bought baked goods. Like Costco's chicken, which is delicious to me since they brine it before roasting it, but its huge. I think it's almost bigger than my campsite refrigeratorette. I have to eat a lot of chicken before I can get it in that little thing. I'm not talking so much about eating roasted foods but actually cooking them.

I miss my roasted garlic chicken, roasted potatoes and vegetables and baked chicken thighs with feta, butter and rosemary stuffing. I can't do that here in my little slice of Oasis. I can't pop anything in the oven and walk away and come back in 45 minutes to a golden piece of baked or roasted joy.

One day, when I get somewhere kitchen blessed, I'll roast and bake the day away for a good 6 months. Appreciate your oven for me. When you pull something yummy out of your oven, think of me. When you bite into a luscious bit of crispy golden roasted chicken skin, send a thought my way. You really don't know how precious your oven is to me.

I browse online to look at ovens. Aww, sad isn't it.