Cooking lamb on a budget - you just need a bit more time and love!

Hi all!

Ok, well I am kind of thinking now that this blog was not a good idea! As a new mum you are meant to try and get as much sleep at night as you can, however, I spent my whole night thinking of things I want to pop up on this blog!!! So I am writing this now with a very large coffee in my hand. haha.

So, what to cook for dinner? Well as I mentioned, I am recently a new mum and hence, our family lost an income. This has forced me to look for ideas to still provide a yummy meal for my family but on more of a tight budget! And lets face it, we are all trying to stick to a budget so putting more 'love' into your cooking can help do this. This next recipe idea is SO tasty BUT you can cook on a budget.

One of my favourite meats is lamb. It can however, be slightly more expensive than other meats and some people stay clear of it for that reason. You can cook lamb on a budget though - you just need to put in a little more time and love in to it.

ALSO there is nothing wrong with some of the pre-made sauces out on the market nowadays. Just make sure you always read the ingredients to make sure they don't contain a million grams of sugar! For this recipe idea, I used a curry paste that I got in the supermarket. Who has time to make their own curry paste? NOT ME! All you need to add is normally is coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar - that's easy!

The key to this dish is to brown your lamb first and then SLOW cook it. By slow cooking I mean it needs to be in the oven for a minimum of 2 hours. All the cooking is done first though so you don't have to stand in the kitchen for this time! Use these extra few hours to enjoy a glass of wine with your partner, play with your kids or enjoy some TV time for yourself. The extra time you put in to this dish will be worth it!

PENAENG LAMB CURRY (Cheats/busy persons version)


Ingredients

• Lamb (You can use any cut of lamb you like for this but if you are keeping to a budget try lamb BBQ chops or lamb four-quarter chops)
• Flour
• Onions
• Garlic
• Panaeng Curry Paste (I use the Valcom brand)
• Potatoes
• Coconut milk
• Fish sauce
• Sugar
• Rice 
• Mixed green vegetables 

Basic Method

• Coat your lamb in flour and brown in a pan. Set aside
• Heat garlic, onions and Panaeng curry paste in a large pot until the flavours smell out your entire home and you make your neighbours jealous! 
• Add your lamb back and make sure it is covered in the paste.
• Add your coconut milk, fish sauce and sugar

(This is where I am not going to tell you exactly how much fish sauce, sugar etc to add! You need to taste it yourself and work out whether you need more or not). Totally up to your taste buds!

• SLOW COOK!!!!!! Place in your oven on about 140-150 degrees and give it TIME! The more time, the better. (But don't have too many vinos and forget about it) ha ha.
• Just before your lamb is ready, cook your rice and steamed green vegies! (simple)

Helpful tips

This dish is perfect for a heavy based pot. I am lucky to have a fabulous Le Creuset pot that I use for everything but there are plenty of less expensive ones on the market that do the same job. You can brown your lamb in the same pot to save washing up!

Here is a pic of mine! Please give this dish a go and let me know how yours goes!