Today’s post is lamb shoulder ragu that is so tender, moist & full of flavour. We are talking melt-in-your-mouth, falling-off-the-bone tender…total comfort food with a sauce so tasty you won’t want the meal to end.
All you need is a lamb forequarter (shoulder) – this is the perfect cut for this type of dish. Long, slow cooking brings out such a rich flavour in this lamb ragu recipe.
When you’re finished you will have a pot of tender, shredded lamb in a rich capsicum and paprika sauce…next level pulled lamb ragu!
You could serve it with mashed potato or simply stir it through pasta and top with a scoop of smooth ricotta and plenty of fresh parmesan – my personal favourite. It also works as a great loaded baked potato topping – see my recipe notes.
You get the point, it’s very versatile! It also freezes like a dream, so it’s an excellent candidate for a freezer batch up! See my recipe notes for tips on freezing.
Lee-Ann ♥
Suggested Sides:
Mustard Mashed Potatoes – Pimp Your Mash!
Pulled Lamb Shoulder with Paprika & Capsicum
Moist juicy pulled lamb in rich sauce/gravy spiked with capsicum and paprika - serve over gnocchi, mashed potato, stir through pasta or load up a baked potato...
Ingredients
- 2-2.2 kg bone-in lamb forequarter roast trimmed
- 3 red capsicums/peppers roughly chopped
- 2 brown onions roughly chopped
- 1 tbsp. fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tsp sweet paprika
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste
- 1 tbsp plain/all purpose flour
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 1 litre 4 cups beef stock
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
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Pre heat the oven to 150c.
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In a large dutch oven, fry lamb over medium heat for 15-20 mins, browning all sides as best you can & remove lamb to a plate.
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Carefully drain fat from the pot using paper/kitchen towel, and fry capsicum and onion over medium-high heat for 10-15 mins, or until the moisture from the veg has cooked away.
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Add flour, mix over low heat for 30 seconds.
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Add tomato paste, mix over low heat for 30 seconds.
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Add wine, paprika & thyme, bring to the boil over high heat, making sure to scrape up all the flavoured spots from the bottom of the pot. Simmer until wine starts to reduce, about 1-2 mins.
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Add stock and bring to boil over high heat, then add back lamb, fat side up.
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Drizzle some of the stock mixture over the top of the lamb.
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Bake, covered for 3 1/2 - 4 hours, you know it is done when the meat is soft and falls away from the bone.
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Remove lamb from stock and shred, discarding bones and fat.
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Meanwhile simmer stock over medium heat on stovetop (uncovered) for 20mins to thicken the sauce.
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Add shredded lamb to sauce and serve.
Recipe Notes
This lamb is so versatile - you can pair it with different things to mix it up - try it over mashed potato, stirred through pasta, or as a burger/slider/sandwich.
If you plan to use the meat in a burger/slider/sandwich I would up the flour to 2 tablespoons, and then reduce the sauce on the stove top until you reach your desired consistency.
Be careful when removing the lamb from stock, it will be so tender that it will literally fall apart as you lift it out and pieces can splash back into the hot stock. I use a slotted spoon and tongs to lift the lamb out with some luck, but I quite often still get pieces falling as I go so please be careful!
To make the loaded baked potato in the third photo, take a large thin-skinned white potato (coliban) (about 200-250g) and prick all over with a fork
Rub skin of potato all over with 1 tsp olive oil, place directly on oven rack (no tray) and bake at 180c for 1 hour, or until cooked through. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly.
Transfer potato to a foil (NOT parchment/baking paper as this will burn!) lined baking tray. Cut a large cross in the top of the potato, carefully open/flatten the potato to make a nice bed for your filling. (I use kitchen tongs to split/flatten the potato)
Brush potato with 1 tsp of butter (I use a pastry brush - no need to melt the butter as the heat of the potato will do this) then grill/broil potato for 5-10 mins to brown slightly
Top with a generous dollop of sour cream/crème fraiche, some pulled lamb, then finish off with fresh parmesan
To freeze, just divide into portions to serve 2 (this means they will defrost faster) and seal in a zip lock bag removing as much air as you can, label, and lay flat to freeze.
*Please note that the amount of calories per serve is provided as a guide only, as ingredients and cooking methods can vary greatly*
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