Lamb Ragout

Happy (very belated) New Year!!!  I hope you all had a really wonderful holiday season.  While my blogging certainly hasn't gotten off to the strongest start this year, the first week and a half of 2012 has been fantastic. 

It's finally starting to feel like winter around here, and it's about time!  Don't get me wrong, the 50+ degree days were a real treat, but I just got an awesome new winter coat complete with a furry hood & cute belt, and I'd like to wear it more than twice this season.  Aside from enjoying the new coat, the chilly days have also been inspiring me in the kitchen.  While most people are on some sort of New Year's cleanse, I've been enjoying hearty, comforting meal after hearty, comforting meal.  And one of my new favorites is Lamb Ragout.

The start of 2012 also marked the beginning of my last level (Level 6) at FCI, and my last 6 weeks of working in the kitchen at L'Ecole.  Just as in Level 5, I'll spend this level rotating through the various stations of the kitchen, but with a new set of recipes for each station.  I started my rotation on saucier (meat station) making killer lamb chops and some awesome short ribs.  I've loved every second of my time at this station.  There were nights we were short a person in our group and it was crazy & rushed, and it was ridiculously hot, and there were more than a few burns and some yelling, but all of that somehow felt a little easier now than it did in Level 5. 

Every so often I get lucky and leave school with leftover food.  Such was the case recently when I went home with a lot of lamb.  Score!  One of the first things on my agenda was Lamb Ragout.  I made a few batches and it certainly hasn't disappointed!  Serve it over polenta, mixed with pasta, stuffed inside raviolis, over rice or eat it straight from the pot.....any way you eat it, it's going to be delicious!

Print Recipe

Lamb Ragout

7 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 lb. lamb

2 carrots, peeled & finely chopped

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 shallots, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup dry red wine

1 - 28oz. can whole peeled tomatoes, quartered

1 cup chicken stock

2 bay leaves

3 sprigs fresh thyme

3 sprigs fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste

In a large saute pan, heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add lamb to the pan, cook to brown on all sides, about 10 minutes.  Remove the meat from the pan, and set aside to hold for later.

Add the remaining oil to the pan.  Add the carrots, onion and shallots, and sweat until soft without obtaining any color on the vegetables, about 10 minutes.  Add the garlic to the pan, and cook 1 minute.  Season lightly with salt & pepper.

Add the wine to the pan and deglaze, scraping up the brown bits (sucs) from the bottom of the pan (these bits are delicious and full of flavor, and you absolutely want them in your ragout).  Reduce the wine until fully evaporated.

Add the chopped canned tomatoes (and sauce), chicken stock, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, red pepper flakes and salt & pepper.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer for 1 1/2 - 2 hours, stirring occasionally.  Discard bay leaves, thyme and rosemary stems.  Taste and adjust seasoning, as necessary. 

Enjoy!