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food lamb pork rosemary stock thyme tomato

slow cooked pork and lamb ragu

pork and lamb ragu

I had a great big clear out of the freezer and unearthed heaps of lamb and pork. Great big lamb shanks and chunks of pork all solid as rock and crying to be used up. I couldn’t resist the opportunity to make a slow cooked pork and lamb ragu. Kinda traditional style, but I used a few Knorr flavour pots to kick things along. If you don’t have stock pots, add about 6 cloves of crushed garlic and a tablespoon of dried Italian herbs such as oregano, basil, or parsley. I didn’t even have an onion in the house so I didn’t bother.

After a brief sear I pretty much chucked everything in a pot and left it to cook on a low oven for 14 hours. I would’ve used my slow cooker but it wasn’t big enough! Step forward my largest Le Creuset casserole dish to house the meat mound.

The rich meaty smell filled the house, the kind of smell that drives everyone mad with hunger, the kind of smell that brings people in off the street to investigate.

Happily there was some cheese and broccoli bake in the freezer too to make a mean topping. A bit like a shapeless lasagne al forno.

I could eat this sort of stew all day. Thankfully it made buckets of the stuff so much of it returned to the freezer for another day! You don’t have to make the absurd quantities I have. Scale it down to sensible proportions as required and you’ll have all the pork and lamb ragu you need. Make sure that pasta’s al dente and you add back to the sauce to combine for the last minute or so.

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slow cooked pork and lamb ragu

Author Gary @ BigSpud

Ingredients

  • 4 lamb shanks
  • 8 pork osso buco
  • 1 sprig rosemary
  • 1 sprig thyme
  • 4 tins tomatoes
  • 1 litre beef stock
  • 1 Knorr garlic flavour pot
  • 1 Knorr mixed herbs flavour pot
  • 2 tablespoons good quality balsamic vinegar

Instructions

  • Set the oven to 100C. Get a (very) large casserole dish over a high heat. Season the meat on all sides and brown in batches, removing to one side. When all the meat has been seared, return the meat to the pan with all the other ingredients. Bring to the boil and then transfer to the oven. Cook for 14 hours, or until the meats can be pushed apart with a spoon. Shred the meat and serve with pasta.

Want more slow-cooked lamb? Check out Nazima’s pulled lamb. Mouthwatering!

Or maybe Jeanne’s oxtail ragu. Immense!

Perhaps Helen’s more traditional beef ragu is up your street? Delicious!

Leftover ragu? Try Kavey’s recipe for stuffed courgettes. Brilliant!

Categories
beef food mince pasta stock

spaghetti elvedenese

Some of the best meals come when your hands are tied; everyone’s hungry and you just have to work with what you’ve got. I had this recently whilst on holiday at Center Parcs Elveden Forest. Worn out from trekking, swimming and climbing, the troops needed fuel!

We’ve been to this village several times over the years and never failed to have an amazing time. We have kids separated in age by 9 years. This presents it’s own challenges which is well catered for by the variety of activities available. The big ‘un can go climbing trees and archery whilst the littl’un can go to fairy parties and learn to ride a bike. I’ve always loved the swimming complex, packed with inventive ways to be thrown about in the water.

And of course you can return to the home base of your self-catering villa. Being a cooking-loving kinda person I always cast a critical eye over the kitchen. You’re sorted for an oven, hob, microwave, dishwasher, fridge and letterbox-sized freezer. The range of utensils and pots can be challenging, with what seems like the Argos value pan set in the cupboard. There’s just three things I wish they’d include in the standard kitchen kit to keep me happy: some tongs (invaluable for turning things on a grill, and the best thing for serving spaghetti dishes), a decent knife to chop an onion with (blunted for safety no doubt), and a decent-size casserole dish. For this dinner (to feed 4) I had to juggle a couple of pans to cook my mince mixture.

I can’t be the first person to make spag bol here surely? It’s a real challenge to try and make family portions in small pans.

This is a minor criticism. I’m certain I must be the only one grumbling about this issue but being a food person the kitchen situation is never going to be perfect.

So here’s my rescue dinner, a kind-of crowd pleasing spaghetti bolognese, with odds and ends from home and a few essentials from the village supermarket. If you can pick up Knorr Flavour Pots they’re a great way to shortcut flavour into your dinners.

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spaghetti elvedenese

Author Gary @ BigSpud

Ingredients

  • 500 g beef mince
  • 2 onions peeled and diced
  • 1 tin tomatoes
  • 1 Knorr Mixed Herbs flavour pot
  • 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup
  • 1 teaspoon Marmite rounded
  • 200 g spaghetti

Instructions

  • Brown the mince in a saucepan, in batches if required. Put to one side when done, removing with a slotted spoon. In the same pan, gently fry the onion. Once the onion has softened, pop the mince back in the pan.
  • Add the tomatoes, then fill the tin back up with water and add that to the pan too. Stir in the stock pot. Once it all comes up to the boil, add the ketchup and Marmite. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes while you cook the pasta according to the packet instructions.
  • As the pasta finishes, check the mince for seasoning. Drain the pasta and then combine in the pan with the mince. Give it a real good stir for a minute to let the spaghetti soak up the flavours. Serve with grated cheese and crisp salad leaves.
Categories
food lamb leftovers potatoes rosemary stock worcestershire sauce

l & p (lamb & potatoes)

This recipe is a take on a boulangere, potatoes simmered in stock. Made with leftover roast lamb coated in Lea & Perrins what else could I call it but “L&P”, lamb & potatoes. It could be made just as well with beef and slipping a few bits of veg in there wouldn’t go amiss. I served mine with peas in mint butter, and a blob of pickled red cabbage.

I’m not sure I don’t ever have a bottle of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce in the cupboard. When an instant acidic, savoury pep is required a few splashes brings something to life. When there’s leftovers tasting a little flat or sad, L&P is a great standby.

If you’re looking for more inspiration, check out the Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce YouTube channel. And here are those Sorted chaps making a spaghetti bolognese with it.

Those links up there are sponsored, but don’t let that distract you from a great lamb & potatoes recipe.

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l & p (lamb & potatoes)

Author Gary @ BigSpud

Ingredients

  • 250 g leftover roast lamb
  • 750 g white potatoes thinly sliced
  • 1 sprig rosemary very finely chopped
  • About 10 tablespoons Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
  • 400 ml hot chicken stock

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 180C and get a frying pan over a high heat.
  • Add a dash of oil, add the rosemary and the lamb and stir fry for a minute. Splash over the Worcestershire sauce and kep shaking and stirring the pan to coat the meat in a sticky glaze. When the lamb is sticky, remove from the pan.
  • In a baking dish put a layer of half of the potatoes and season well. Add the lamb over the top, then another layer of potatoes and season again. Add the stock until just reaching the tops of the potatoes, cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
Categories
carrots chicken lemon noodles stock

lemon chicken on crispy noodles

Not having money sucks. Worse still, not having money and really enjoying food sucks. The time you most notice this is when you’re a student. Most Wanted, the magazine for VoucherCodes.co.uk has asked me to come up with some recipes that are frugal but hopefully don’t feel like it!

The first of these is lemon chicken on crispy noodles. It’s inspired by a Ken Hom recipe that’s a favourite in our house. It’s tasty, messy and great fun to eat. It also scales up really well if you need to feed a few more friends.

The ingredients in this are pretty basic but raised up by making the flavours big and punchy. Shopping around you could save money on the chicken, and can be adjusted to suit any other sturdy vegetables you wanted to add, such as peas or green beans. However don’t cut too many corners with the stock, it forms the base of the flavour and carries the rest of the dish. I like Knorr products so look out for good brands of stock cubes and stock pots: stock is handy in almost all savoury recipes. One thing to watch for in this recipe is it needs two frying pans on the go, so you may need to borrow another! You should be in and out of the kitchen in 15 minutes once you get the hang of this one.

Approximate cost  for main ingredients, excludes storecupboard ingredients (prices from Tesco.com 4th Oct 2012): £1.72

Lemon chicken on crispy noodles (serves 1):

1 packet of instant noodles

1 chicken breast, diced

250ml stock made with ½ stock cube

1 lemon

2 carrots

1 teaspoon cornflour

  1. Get a pan of water on a rapid boil and add the noodles. Cook for 3 – 4 minutes until tender and then tip into a sieve to drain. Rinse with cold water to completely cool them down.
  2. Get two frying pans on over medium-high heat. In one of them you will cook the noodles; this should have a layer of oil to coat the base of the pan. The other just needs a tiny bit into which to cook everything else.
  3. While the pans heat up dice the chicken and prepare the carrot. Peel the carrot, and after you’ve discarded the skin keep peeling until you reach the bitter core, which you can chuck away. Being very careful to avoid spatter add the noodles to their pan and spread out with a wooden spoon so they cover the base. Add the chicken to the other pan and stir fry for a couple of minutes until coloured all over, then add the stock and carrots.
  4. Into the chicken pan grate in the zest of the lemon and the juice of half. Stir well to combine and let it bubble away for a couple of minutes. The noodles should be crisp on one side now so with confidence flip them over. While the other side cooks taste the broth. You may want to add more lemon, or possibly a pinch of sugar or salt to balance everything out. When you’re happy with the flavour add a splash of water to the cornflour in a small dish and mix well, then tip this into the sauce.
  5. When the noodles are done tip them on to kitchen paper to drain, and then into your serving bowl. Tip the chicken and the sauce over the top and start slurping!
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