East meets West lamb

When I saw that there was a challenge coming up at Foodie Fights I just had to jump in. The friendly competition is between 6 people who are given two random ingredients that they have to incorporate into a dish. It was my birthday weekend and I couldn't think of a better way to spend my time than cooking. I love cooking you know. The ingredients this time were ginger and peas. Hmmm. *I* can do that.



So seeing that we are lucky enough to have the pleasure of buying the most unbelievable lamb (which we have gone through 2 entire lamb and waiting to pick up the third) at Leyden Farm, a farm owned by friends. So having the lamby goodness in our freeze my first thought was LAMB! So here you have it.



Getting down to business the first thing I did was have Mr. Food make me a Gin and Titanic. My sister bought me the ice cube tray and I just had to try it out. Of course the thought of a cold gin and tonic to launch my foray into creating this recipe didn't hurt.



So, last night I marinaded the lamb. I started with our "honored guest" ginger.



and whipped together the marinade.





I then put it all in a sealer bag to marinade overnight. Here is the picture BEFORE I discovered a hole in the bag and transfered it all to a ziplock bag. Shut up...I don't make a cooking faux pas very often.



Tonight we got down to business to get the whole thing together. I started off with the sauce.


Mr Food started the grilling. He grilled the lamb 15 minutes per side over medium heat (internal temperature 145 degrees). We then let it rest for 10 minutes and then sliced and served with the sauce.



This ginger and peas in the sauce were a perfect combination of tastes with the lamb. It was all balanced by the subtle asian ingredients in the sauce. The ginger and pea flavors came across quite well. We would make this again. Mr Food thought we should suggest this recipe to Ming Tsai (owner and chef of Blue Ginger and expert on East meets West).

East meets West Lamb

2lb lamb roast

Marinade:
1 stalk lemon grass thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic
1/2 shallot roughly chopped
1 Tbl cilantro stems
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 dried New Mexico chili soaked for 10 min and deveined and seeded
2/3 C water
2 Tbl safflower oil
1 tsp sugar

Mix all of the above in a blender or food processor. Pour over lamb in zipper bag or food sealer bag and refrigerate overnight.
Grill lamb 15 minutes per side or until internal temperature is 145 degrees. Let rest 5 minutes and slice and serve with sauce.


Cream Sauce:
2 oz peeled fresh ginger
2 C water
5 shallots peeled and minced
1/2 C dry vermouth
1 C creme fraiche
1 C Coconut milk
2 C peas + 1 C to add whole to sauce
1 Tbl butter
5 inch piece lemongrass cut into 1" pieces and smashed with back of knife
5 sprigs cilantro
3 sprigs mint

1. Cut 1/4 of the ginger into matchsticks. Bring 2 C water to a boil and add sliced ginger. Boil for 1 minute. Strain and rinse with cold water and set aside.



2. Melt 1/2 Tbl butter in a small saucepan over low heat. When butter foams add shallots and cook for 3 minutes over low heat. Do not allow shallots to color.

3. Add lemongrass, cilantro, mint, and vermouth. Cook over low heat for 3 minutes. Add creme fraiche and coconut milk and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Pass through a fine strainer into another saucepan and stir in 1/2 tbl butter. Season with a pinch of salt.



4. In a blender or food processor blend peas with a little bit of the sauce until it forms a paste. Add paste to rest of sauce and simmer for 10 minutes. Add whole peas and boiled ginger strips.



So there you have it!



Now vote for me. Please go look at the competition and if you feel that I deserve it (I will make you dinner if you do) vote for me at Foodie Fights.


Now just in case you want the recipe for the daikon salad that is in that photo...



I made string stuff on my handy dandy japanese thingy



and made a dressing and let it sit in the refrig for a couple of hours. I didn't make this one up but I did come up with the idea of using the handy dandy Japanese tool thingy.

Ginger, Carrot, and Daikon Salad
Big Oven website

1/2 Daikon radish julienned
1 med carrot, julienned
6 radishes thinly sliced

Dressing:
3 Tbl seasoned rice vinegar
1 tbl gingerroot
2 cloves garlic; chopped
1 tbl asian chili sauce
1/2 tsp chopped cilantro
1/3 C vegetable oil
Soy sauce to taste

Mix all dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Refrigerate for a couple of hours.