Starters & Light meals

Couscous and lamb rib croquettes with roast carrots and baby marrow ribbons

6
Easy
30 minutes, plus curing time
2 hours
Wine/Spirit Pairing
Thelema Mountain Red 2011

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Ingredients

Method
  • 50 g coarse salt
  • 30 g sugar
  • 1 orange, zested
  • 5 juniper berries, crushed
  • 400 g lamb ribs
  • 2 cups beef stock
  • 150 g instant couscous
  • Salt, to taste
  • 1 handful sliced mint
  • 1 handful sliced chives
  • 1 pinch fresh thyme leaves
  • 1 free-range egg yolk
  • 1 litre vegetable oil, for frying
  • Picked parsley, to garnish
  • For the roast carrots:

  • 3 carrots, peeled and sliced lengthways
  • 50 g unsalted butter
  • 6 sprigs thyme
  • Sea salt, to taste
  • For the baby marrow ribbons:

  • 3 baby marrows
  • 2 T vegetable oil
  • Sea salt, to taste

Mix the salt, sugar, orange zest and juniper berries and rub onto the ribs. Cover and chill for 4 hours. Rub the cure off the lamb, but do not rinse with water.

Place the ribs in a medium-sized saucepan, pour over the beef stock and cover. Slowly simmer until the meat is falling off the bone. Remove the ribs from the cooking liquid and set aside. Reduce the liquid to a thick sauce.

Shred the meat from the ribs and pour over the reduced stock to keep moist. Set aside.

Place the couscous in a bowl, just cover with boiling water and cover with clingfilm. Allow to stand for about 10 minutes, or until the couscous has puffed up. Fluff with a fork and season. Toss through the herbs. Add the egg yolk and stir until well combined.

Roll the lamb mixture into balls and cover each ball with a little couscous. Chill for 30 minutes, or until firm. Heat the oil to 180°C in a deep-fryer. Deep-fry until crisp and golden. Drain on kitchen paper.

To make the roast carrots, preheat the oven to 180°C.

Place the carrots in a roasting tray with the butter, thyme and salt. Cover with tinfoil and roast for 30 minutes, or until caramelised.

To make the baby marrow ribbons, peel the baby marrows into neat ribbons using a vegetable peeler. Pour over the vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt and chargrill for 1 to 2 minutes, or until soft and crisp around the edges.

To serve, arrange the croquettes on a plate and garnish with the roast carrots and baby marrow ribbons. Drizzle with a little of the leftover braising liquid if desired.

Luke Dale-Roberts

Recipe by: Luke Dale-Roberts

Considered a foodie visionary by most, Luke Dale-Roberts is the mastermind behind SA's number one restaurant, The Test Kitchen, as well as The Pot Luck Club.

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