Chef's Delight: Mini Lamb Pie
Recipe by Norbert Neylon
A WORD FROM THE CHEF
There is a bit of work to this dish but it's worth it! The lamb can be cooked the day before and the cooking liquid can be placed in the fridge and the fat removed from the liquid the next day. This will give you a better sauce. The vegetables can be cooked in advance and reheated at the last minute. Your pastry can be rolled out and cut in advance. This recipe could also be used for beef.
INGREDIENTS
(Serves 6)
1Kg stewing lamb
350g of good quality puff
pastry
Two courgettes
80g of pearl onions
100g of diced butternut
squash
12 baby carrots
Six pieces of broccolini
75g of peas
300g of celeriac (for puree)
50ml cream
One egg
To stew the lamb you will need:
One onion, roughly chopped
Four cloves of garlic, crushed
One bay leaf
Two sprigs of rosemary
One carrot roughly chopped
150ml of red wine
500ml of good quality lamb stock (use chicken stock if you can't get lamb)
METHOD
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
Fry off the lamb in frying pan in small quantities to achieve a good brown colour.
Add the lamb to a large pot with the onion, garlic, bay leaf, rosemary, carrot, red wine and stock.
Just add enough stock to cover the lamb.
Place a lid on the pot and put in the oven.
Cook for 1.5 to 2 hours depending on the size of your lamb pieces, or until the lamb is tender.
Once the lamb is cooked, allow to cool slightly. Then strain off the cooking liquid and start to reduce this to use as your sauce.
Separate the lamb from the stewing vegetables and finely chop the lamb.
Celeriac puree
Peel and cut the celeriac into small bit size pieces. Place in a saucepan cover with water and cook until soft.
Once soft add the celeriac to a blender using a slotted spoon (be sure to add the cooking liquid gradually to the blender and not all at once). You want to get a smooth consistency.
Finish the celeriac puree with the cream to keep the colour.
Making the pie
Once your sauce is reduced, add a little to your chopped lamb, this will help to bind it together.
Once the lamb mix is cold, roll out your pastry in 10cm rounds, nice and thin you will need 12 rounds for six pies - one for the base and a lid for each.
Place approximately 100g of the lamb mix in a ball in the centre of the pastry.
Then use the egg to brush the outside of the pastry before placing the lid on top, this will help the pastry to stick together.
Use your thumb to seal the two discs of pastry and push the pie mixture to the centre.
If you're feeling brave, use a knife to decorate the pie as shown in the picture.
Brush with the egg and bake at 200 degrees Celsius for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.
Vegetables to garnish the pie
Prepare the courgettes, baby carrots, butternut squash and broccolini and cook separately. Then add the peas and pearl onions.
To Serve
Place the puree in the centre of your plate. I have cut the pie in half but you can leave it in one piece if you prefer. Arrange the pie with the freshly cooked vegetables around accompanied by your sauce. Enjoy.
ABOUT THE CHEF
Norbert Neylon is the chef proprietor of The Oak Room Restaurant in Cavan since 2001.
The Oak Room moved to a new purpose-built building in May of 2017 on Bridge Street in Cavan Town. Norbert is currently the chairman of Created in Cavan, a network of food producers, farmers, cafés, restaurants and hotels in the Cavan region.
He is passionate about promoting local food and cooking with local ingredients.
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