Zero Waste Recipe: The Savoy’s Organic Lamb Loin and Shepherd’s Pie

Looking for low waste Christmas recipes? This lamb loin and shepherd’s pie recipe from Simpsons in the Strand at The Savoy is not only delicious, it’s been created with the planet in mind. It’s not the easiest of recipes, but hard work pays off…

Recipe: Organic Lamb Loin with Mint-Parsley Pure and Traditional Shepherd’s Pie from The Savoy

For this recipe we are going to need the top part of a whole lamb (neck to saddle). After butchering the lamb, we are getting: 1kg neck fillet, 1.3kg of lamb loin. Some second cuts from the shoulder that we are going to dice small and use it for the pie. The loin we portion at 110g. The bones and the fat we are going to use for the stock.

Serves 4

Lamb Stock (yield 6 litres)

Ingredients

• 6kg lamb bones small cut
• 0.2kg onions (mirepoix)
• 0.2kg carrots (mirepoix)
• 0.1kg celery (mirepoix)
• 15g garlic (mirepoix)
• 0.1kg leek, white part (mirepoix)
• 15g tomato paste
• 0.15 litres dry red wine
• 0.3g black peppercorn
• 0.4 bay leaves (bouquet garni)
• 1/4 bunch of thyme (bouquet garni)
• 1/4 bunch of rosemary (bouquet garni)
• 9 litres water

Method

1. Roast the bones in the oven until nice brown colour around 45 minutes at 190°C.
2. Once the bones are roasted, strain and keep the lamb fat for later use, also deglaze the baking trays with water.
3. In a pan start to roast the mirepoix (onions, carrots, celery, garlic and leek).
4. Once roasted, add the tomato puree and the bouquet garni (bay leaves, thyme and rosemary) and roast for 6 minutes.
5. Deglaze with the red wine. Add in the bones and fill it with the water and bring to the boil to start skimming the top.
6. Once the skimming is done, simmer covered at 94°C for 8 hours. 7 Strain by passing through a fine chinois.

Lamb Jus (yield 0.5 litres)

Ingredients

• 5 litres Lamb stock
• 1.3kg Lamb fat
• 3.5 litres Dry red wine
• 1.5 litres Port wine
• 1.5kg Red onions
• 1kg Button mushrooms
• 0.5kg Fresh tomatoes
• 0.75 litres Dry red wine
• half bunch rosemary

Method

1. In the pan, roast the red onions and mushrooms in 100g of lamb fat. Deglaze with red wine by adding it gradually so it doesn’t boil.
2. Reduce until the alcohol is gone and looks like a glaze.
3. Add the halved tomatoes with the lamb stock and reduce it down to sauce consistency, 10 minutes before the end infuse with the rosemary.
4. Checking seasoning. Strain it and at this point mix the lamb fat with the sauce in a blender until they are completely emulsified.

Parsley and mint puree (yield 450g)

(If you do not have a Pakojet machine, the dish can be served without this purée)

Ingredients

• 170g Flat leaf parsley
• 170g Mint
• 100g Extra virgin olive oil
• 10g Salt

Method

1. Pick and wash all herbs.
2. Bring 5 litres of water to the boil with the salt.
3. Blanch herbs for 1 minute and chill it down in iced water.
4. Wring out well using a clean J-cloth, chop roughly and place in a freezable container with the oil.
5. Freeze for at least 24 hours.
6. When ready to serve, purée in a Pakojet until the mixture is of a purée consistency.

Braised Salsify

Ingredients

• 210g Salsify
• 125g Butter
• 420g Veg stock

Method

1. Peel and cut salsify into 30g cylinders, soaking in water with lemon (to stop going brown).
2. Melt butter and add veg stock, bring to the boil, add the salsify into mix.
3. Cover with tin foil and cook in oven at 160°C for 20 to 30 minutes. 4 Remove from liquid (keep liquid for next time) and leave to cool.
4. Just before plating the full dish, sauté the salsify until golden brown.

Pickling Liquid (yields 3 litres)

• 1 litre Cider vinegar
• 1 litre White wine vinegar
• 1kg Caster sugar
• 100g Table salt
• 1g Clove
• 3g White peppercorn
• 4 Leaves bay leaves
• 5g Thyme

Method

1. 1 Use up all trimmings from previously peeled salsify.
2. 2 Bring the liquid to the boil.
3. 3 Leave to cool down.
4. 4 Submerge the salsify in the cold liquid and keep in the fridge for at least 6 hours before serving.

Shepherd’s Pie (yields 4 portions of 230g)

• 0.9kg Lamb neck diced small (0.5 X 0.5Cm)
• 80g Grated carrot (fine, mirepoix)
• 15g Grated onion (fine, mirepoix)
• 20g Grated garlic (fine, mirepoix)
• 60g Grated celery (fine, mirepoix)
• 20g Flour
• 0.3 litres Port wine
• 0.5 litres Red dry wine
• 80g 80G lamb fat for searing
• 400g Concase fresh tomato
• 4g Fresh chopped rosemary (fine)
• 2g Thyme, rosemary, bay leaf (Bouquet garni)
• 2g Table salt
• 1 litre Lamb stock

Method

1. Melt the lamb fat in the pan and sear the meat until brown.
2 Once the meat is brown, powder with the flour, add the salt and keep roasting the meat for another 5 minutes.
2. Add the mirepoix (carrot, onion, garlic and celery) and keep searing for another 5 minutes or until the juices have all evaporated.
3. Add gradually the port wine first in small doses so the meat doesn’t boil in it.
4. Add the bouquet garni (thyme, rosemary and bay leaf).
6 Once all the port wine has been added and reduced, follow the same
5. process with the dry red wine.
6. When all the red wine is reduced turn the heat on low and cover the meat with the lamb stock.
7. Let it slow cook until the juices are reduced to the right consistency.
8. Taste the seasoning and consistency.
9. Add the fresh concasse tomato and keep slow-cooking for another 10 minutes.
10. Add the finely chopped rosemary remove from the pot.
12 Place in an oven dish, ready to top with the duchess potato, while still hot.

Duchess Potato

• 850g Maris piper potatoes
• 2 quartered Eggs
• 60ml Cream
• 2 tbsp Grated parmesan cheese
• 1⁄4 tsp Ground nutmeg
• 1 Egg yolk, for glazing

Ingredients

1. Boil the potato for 20 minutes, until just tender. Drain, then return the potatoes to the pan over very low heat for 1 to 2 minutes to dry out the potato. Transfer to a bowl and mash well.
2. Beat together the eggs, cream, parmesan and nutmeg. Season well, then add to the potato and mash well.
3. Put the just-warm potato mixture in a piping bag with a 0.5cm star nozzle. Pipe the mixture in swirls, close together, onto the top of the pie mix.
4. Brush lightly all over with the extra egg yolk. Place it under the grill
for 10 minutes or until you reach the desired colour for your pie! Serve immediately, accompanied by the parsley and mint purée, braised salsify, pickled salsify and lam jus.

More Zero Waste Christmas Recipes / How To Have A Greener Christmas