February Goes Out Like A Lamb

Over two years ago now, when I was living in Ireland, we’d get up early every Saturday morning so we could make it to the Milk Market then we’d go grocery shopping. One not-so-very-special Saturday, we were in Dunnes and I was browsing through the clearance cold section when I stumbled upon cubed lamb.

Now, I guess let me back track. I don’t consider my younger self to be an extraordinarily picky person. I loved broccoli (come one, what kid loves broccoli?) and I grew to love stuffed cabbage and other things that I didn’t particularly care for originally. Lamb, however, was something that I never grew to like as many times as my mom said “Try it, you might like it.”

Yet, here it was, catching my eye and begging me to buy it. I couldn’t resist, so I picked it up. Then I thought, well, I’ve no idea how to cook this.

Balsamic vinegar came to mind (completely unbidden, I must say. Surprisingly, this happens a lot. Especially with food and art). I went and got some.

What do you pair lamb with? Rice, duh. That wasn’t even something I needed to think about.

So that night, when I was getting ready to cook dinner, I invited my dearest Dessa over to be a guinea pig.

I marinated the lamb in the vinegar for probably about twenty minutes while I cooked the rice then I cooked the lamb too – just in a skillet on the stove, with the marinade.

We poured the lamb and some juice over the rice and dug in.

Our eyes widened and little “ooh’s” issued forth and I knew I was hooked.

Much to my disappointment though, I could hardly ever find cubed lamb in the stores in the U.S. and lamb chops just didn’t have the same taste so I rarely made it at home. It was never as good anyway – much more tough. My thought is that people in the British Isles are swamped with sheep so they know what to do with them. We have more cows in the States…

So! Here I am. In the British Isles again and what did I find this week at my favorite store? Cubed lamb. Organic and free range (which actually means something here!). I bought it and then went straight to grab a bottle of balsamic vinegar. This time, though, I’d complement it with a vegetable and I had some mixed grain rice left over from what I brought here so no white rice. Here’s my recipe!

Balsamic Lamb

Cubed lamb

Balsamic vinegar

1 medium sliced onion

Rice, cooked

I put broccoli and onions with this batch. I just cooked the broccoli in a bit of water then added the onions a few minutes before the broccoli was done.

1. Put the lamb in a container and cover it with vinegar. Let sit for about twenty minutes to a half hour, or longer if you want. The vinegar isn’t’ as strong when you cook it so don’t worry. This is a good time to start the rice.
2. When the rice is about ¾ done, put the lamb in a skillet and cook on medium high until it’s done through.
3. You can add onions to the lamb a few minutes before it’s done for something a little extra.
4. When everything is done, scoop some rice out into a bowl and then some lamb and sauce. Put the veg on top or on the side and voila!