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Sunday, September 28, 2008

I just can't help myself

Firstly, a big hug going out to Off-Black and Fish. The offer of a big lasagne to go in the freezer and get you through this most unbelievably difficult of times stands. Just say the word.

Has anyone noticed how the price of meat seems to keep rising? Even beef mince is costing $12.95/kilo now, which makes a lot of our economical meals suddenly less affordable. How is one supposed to react to this? Well, we've continued to patronise the Wai-ora Lamb stall at the Hutt Market, and I'm consistently impressed by the quality and the price of their product. I've posted about it before, and I just can't keep myself from going back.

For the first time ever, I bought Lamb Rack. This cut cost $7.50, which was a treat for us as a single meal, but cheaper than you can find a similar cut for at the supermarket or the butcher; and the meat is just divine.
I prepared these with my favourite lamb dressing: Garlic, fresh chopped rosemary and mint, freshly grated parmesan, freshly ground salt and pepper, and olive oil. Then I cook them on my special Pizza setting on the oven, which mainly roasts the meat from the bottom while gently grilling the parmesan and oil on top.
I cooked it for about 40 minutes, which was a bit too long, and the lamb is a teeny bit overdone for my liking, but its how Dessert Chef likes it, and the meat is so damned good anyway that it still tastes gorgeous. It's a bit hard to get the timing just perfect when you're cooking on a weeknight with an almost 2-year old running about under your feet.
I served these up with roasted onions, steamed veges fresh from the market, and fettucine with alfredo sauce.
The following week at the stall I found three little lamb steaks for $3.50! These were delicious; I encrusted them with fresh picked oregano and mint, and cooked in hot olive oil very quickly in a pan.
So since the price of our old friend mince is shooting up, why not spend the money on good free range meat instead? Nice work Wai-ora Farm. Keep it up.

(No, this is not a sponsored post. I just rate this lamb, and support small operations who are doing it right)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have to agree. This lamb is the business. Tender as it gets and great flavour. Just placed my second order for another whole lamb. These folks clearly care about their produce. John, Wellington.

Nicole said...

Found your blog through the Wai-ora site. We're ordering a whole lamb and rather excited about it ;p I look forward to perusing your blog for recipes!