Lamb Ossobuco with an ‘almost’ Risotto Milanese

Not authentically Italian I know, I know. But in this country veal shanks are a devil to get hold of and neck fillets of lamb are absolutely everywhere. So why not, I thought, and why not indeed because this is supremely good. The next point is the vexed question of ossobuco’s traditional accompaniment – risotto Milanese which is a lot of fiddly bother and cheats are never going to stand slaving over a hot saucepan of rice for half an hour. Fear not – I can promise you all the right flavours if not precisely the correct textures but again it’s extremely good. The very authentic bit in all this is Cirio i Sughi Rustici sauce – very tomatoey and very Italian and the gremolata, a mixture of lemon peel, parsley and garlic is sprinkled on top.

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  Serves 2 (double for 4 or treble for 6)

Ingredients
1 lb (450 g) neck of lamb fillet
1 medium onion
1 clove garlic
1 x 400 g jar of Cirio i Sughi Rustici (basilico)
1 dessertspoon olive oil
6 fl oz (175 ml) dry white wine
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
salt and freshly milled black pepper
For the risotto:
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 oz (25 g) butter
5 fl oz (150 ml) carnaroli rice
5 fl oz (150 ml) white wine
5 fl oz (150 ml) vegetable stock, made-up from Marigold Swiss vegetable bouillon powder
a generous pinch of saffron
2 heaped tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
salt
For the gremolata (to finish):
1 clove garlic
1 heaped tablespoon fresh parsley
1 heaped teaspoon lemon zest
Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 6, 400°F (200°C).

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This recipe first appeared in You Magazine.

Method

Begin by trimming off the obvious fat from the neck fillets, then slice them into little round nuggets about 1½ inches (4 cm) thick. Then peel and slice the onion and the garlic and arrange them in the base of a shallow, sauté pan, heatproof dish or casserole. Place the little nuggets of meat in an upright position on top of the onions, then sprinkle in the oil, season with salt and pepper and pop the whole thing on to a high shelf in the oven and leave it there without a lid for 30 minutes. After this time, the edges of the lamb will be nicely browned.

After that, whisk the tomato sauce, wine and wine vinegar together in a jug and when the meat has had its 30 minutes, pour the tomato mixture all over. Then turn the oven temperature down to gas mark 1, 275°F (140°C) and still leaving the lid off, let it cook for another 1½ hours.

Now for the risotto and there is a strict rule here: one thing the cheat must do with this risotto is use a timer – given that it’s dead easy otherwise, this is no big deal. Overcooking makes it stodgy so don’t leave it around before serving. All you do is take a small frying pan with a lid, sweat the onion in it in the butter for 3-4 minutes, stir in the rice, then add the wine and stock and saffron, along with some salt. As soon as it reaches simmering point, turn the heat down to its lowest setting, put a lid or a suitably sized plate on top and let it cook gently for 20 minutes. And stand by to serve it as soon as the timer goes or 'presto pronto', as they say in Italy.

Meanwhile, make the gremolata. Finely, peel, chop and crush the garlic and chop the parsley. Then mix the garlic with the parsley and grated lemon zest. Then when the rice is ready – the grains will be cooked but still have some bite and be surrounded by a small amount of creamy liquid – stir in the grated Parmesan. Serve the rice divided into the centre of hot plates with the lamb on top of the sauce and the parsley gremolata sprinkled over the top. All I have to say now is buon appetito!

How To Cheat Hero Ingredients
Cirio i Sughi Rustici (basilico) Freshly grated Parmesan (Parmigiano Reggiano) in a tub. Both from Sainsbury’s

How To Cheat Equipment Hero
Berndes 24cm removable handle sauté pan which can be used on top of the stove or in the oven as a small casserole.Available from: Aga shops and other good cookshops Delia says, 'I prefer this pan for all manner of quick meals for two – it has a detachable handle which can be attached or detached with one hand whilst still in the oven. It could be a good investment as we will be using this size pan a lot in our cheats’ recipes.'

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