Tuesday 20 March 2012

MOTHER'S DAY LUNCH - SLOW ROAST HOGGET (AND WE DID!)

Mothering Sunday and we had invited mine and Marie's parents over for a family lunch.  I knew I was going to cook a Sunday roast but was deliberating on what joint of meat.  There was the usual suspects of course, pork, beef, chicken, lamb but I wanted to try something different. I remembered that many years back, I had seen the two fat ladies cooking mutton and singing its praises, so I went in search.  Since I was heading over to Ipswich for work anyway, I dropped into the butchers at the Suffolk Food Hall. Great place, have you been? Huge selection of produce and a cafe for lunch break.




They didn't have a Mutton joint big enough unfortunately but what they did have was a shoulder of hogget (lamb over one year old  and less than two) which I was more than happy to try.  


So first thing Sunday morning, I readied the meat for the oven with rosemary and garlic and cooked it for six hours at 130°C, regularly checking and renewing the herbs which together with the juices made a beautiful thick gravy.


Cooked and ready to carve, the hogget was incredibly moist and had so much flavour, more so than
young lamb and a better texture I thought.
A good choice as everyone around the table that day would agree.


Served with roast potato's, a selection of vegetables and celeriac dauphinoise which I have to say
could not have complimented the meat more.



To make the dauphinoise, or my version of it....
Slice one celeriac, a large onion and a small chilli and layer up in a casserole dish. Pour over 200ml of double cream and sprinkle chilli powder over the top.  Cook for 50 minutes at 180 degrees.



Hugh's pudding cake to finish - see the next post
(when I've written it!)


8 comments:

  1. Looks and sounds great, might have to pay a visit to the food hall next time I am up that way. Fab photographs as always.

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    1. Yes, you would appreciate the food hall! Thanks for commenting

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  2. Hello there

    One thing you don't mention is the temperature you cooked the hogget at. I have a shoulder of hogget I'm slow cooking today. The butcher from Ginger Pig said I should cook at 120/130 for 5 hours but I can't see anyone else mention such a low temperature.

    Tips appreciated!

    Nick

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    1. Hi Nick,
      Yes, definitely cook slowly. We cooked ours for six hours at 130°C. Enjoy your hogget and let us know how it goes!

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  3. Okay great, thanks. So, I've just bid farewell to the hogget for at least the next five hours ... added some onions and stock and wine to the base, as per an amalgamation of Ginger Pig and other online advice, so we will see how she bears up under the weight of expectation!

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  4. So, to report back: as it happens I cooked two shoulders (one about 2.5 kilos, the other around 1.5) and the first was in the oven for five hours at 130 celsius, and the other remained in the cooling oven for an extra hour. Both were delicious, but undoubtedly this second shoulder was the more thrilling ... the meat just fell off the bone. I cooked both on a base of coarsely chopped onions, 500 (or so) ml chicken stock, a glass or so of white wine, whole crushed garlic, and a few springs of rosemary. I preheated the oven to 220 but turned the heat down as soon as the lamb - sorry, hogget - went in. And of course covered it all with foil. I'd be interested to try the same with an improvised "dutch oven" - eg big Le Creuset pot with the lid on, to maximise the moisture. The stock / wine / juices (strained to get rid of the onions, although I could prob have worked these in too) made an incredibly tasty gravy once reduced by a half or so. Served with mashed swede (with butter and fried sage added), purple sprouting broccoli and beans. The next day I used the bones to make stock - onions, garlic, two carrots, bay, a tomato, a large glass of white wine, thyme, in approx 3 litres water, all simmered for around 5 hours and then reduced to around 300 ml. Now making a shepherds pie with the leftover meat and this stock. All in all, a bit of a major triumph ... go, hogget, go.

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    Replies
    1. An excellent report back and a great success! Enjoy the leftovers, it will make the best shepherds pie for sure

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