Photography by Shannon Sweetman
‘This is fab for an extended family lunch, as it seems to stretch and feed so many,’ says Denise, who’s new cookbook, Around My Table , features a collection of recipes discovered on her travels around the world. From family recipes and South African staples to Greek mezze and Thai curries, Around My Tableinspires wanderlust almost as much as it whets the appetite. ‘You can start this the day before, and finish off on the day, so it is one of the most stress free dishes I know, and frees up your time to spend with your loved ones.’ Serve this with a side of tzatziki and toasted pita breads to stretch even further.
1 whole lamb shoulder
10 - 12 large garlic cloves, sliced
1⁄2 cup olive oil
2 onions, sliced into thick rings
2 carrots, sliced into rounds
Handful of rosemary, thyme and oregano
4 bay leaves
Salt and black pepper
4 lemon slices
1⁄2 cup of black kalamata olives
4 anchovy fillets
1⁄2 cup white wine
2 cups of chicken stock
Method
Put a splash of olive oil into the bottom of a thick casserole dish (like a le creuset or similar) that has a lid and place over a medium heat.
Rub lamb with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and sear the outside until browned.
Make sharp incisions into the lamb and insert the garlic slices with some of the sprigs of herbs into incisions in the lamb, so that the flavours penetrate into the meat.
Remove the lamb from the pan and add the onions and carrots to the bottom of the dish to make a trivet which will stop the bottom of the lamb from burning during cooking.
Place lamb on top of this and add the rest of the rosemary, thyme, bayleaves, lemon slices, olives, anchovies, wine and stock to the dish.
Put in the oven at 180c for 20 minutes and then drop the temperature to 140c for about 2-3 hours, or until the lamb falls off the bone.
Leave the lid off for the last 20 minutes to reduce the liquid and then shred the lamb into the juices, using two forks.
