Lamb cutlets with pea salad
This simple yet sophisticated recipe makes the most of the classic flavours of English summertime.
Ingredients
For the lamb sauce
- ½ banana shallot, finely chopped
- 250g/9oz lamb trim
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 tomato, quartered
- 100ml/3½fl oz dry white wine
- 1 thyme spring
- 1 litre/1¾ pints lamb stock
- knob of butter
- 1 rosemary sprig
- 1 tsp small capers
- 5 pitted black olives, finely chopped
- ½ lemon, zest only, peeled and thinly sliced
- 5 mint leaves, thinly sliced
For the lamb
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 6 lamb cutlets, French trimmed
- salt and ground white pepper
For the pea salad
- 300g/10½oz frozen petit pois peas
- 1 banana shallot, finely chopped
- pinch mild curry powder
- pinch ground ginger
- 1 tsp olive oil
- ½ tsp icing sugar
- 1 tbsp finely chopped marjoram
- 100g/3½oz fresh podded peas
- 100g/3½oz fresh podded broad beans
To serve
- broad bean flowers
- white leek flowers
- pea shoots
Method
To make the lamb sauce, place a large pan over a high heat. Add the lamb trim and cook, turning frequently, until caramelised all over. Remove the lamb trim and set aside. Add the shallots and garlic to the pan and cook for 5 minutes until caramelised. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and bubble until reduced to a glaze. Return the lamb trim to the pan with the tomato and thyme.
Add the lamb stock to the pan and bring to a rapid boil until the liquid has reduced down to a pourable sauce. Remove from the heat and add one stick of rosemary and leave to infuse for 10 minutes. Pass through muslin or a fine sieve into a clean pan and set aside. Discard the lamb trim and shallots.
Lightly oil the lamb cutlet and season both sides with salt and white pepper. Heat a griddle pan over a high heat, add the lamb cutlets and cook for 2–3 minutes on both sides. Remove the cutlets from the pan and set aside to rest.
To make the pea salad, put the defrosted peas in a blender with the shallot, curry powder, ground ginger, olive oil and icing sugar and pulse for 30 seconds. Add the marjoram and pulse again then transfer to a bowl, stir in the raw peas and broad beans.
Reheat the lamb sauce with a knob of butter, the capers, olives, lemon zest and mint leaves.
To assemble, warm the pea purée in pan over a medium heat. Spoon the purée into the middle of the plate and top with the pea salad. Arrange the lamb cutlets around the plate, spoon over the lamb sauce and garnish with the flowers and shoots and serve.