Servings:

4

Level of difficulty:

Intermediate

Ingredients

4 lamb leg chops, cut thick with bone left in.
3-4 tbsp seasoned flour
4 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion chopped finely
1 large stick of celery chopped finely
1 large carrot chopped finely
A pinch of dried chillie flakes (optional)
100g butter
One whole lemon
5 anchovy fillets
5 whole garlic cloves (peeled)
Half bottle of dry white wine
Large tin Italian plum tomatoes
300 ml lamb stock
Bunch of parsley
3-4 sprigs of thyme
Salt and pepper

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 150c (reduce slightly if fan assisted)
Coat the chops in seasoned flour shaking off any excess.
Seal the chops in a wide frying pan using 3 tbsp of the oil.
Once sealed place the chops in a deep sided oven proof dish (I use a roasting pan).
Add the remaining oil and the butter to the frying pan and reduce the heat.
Add to the pan the onion, celery, carrot and chillie flakes. Cook gently till the vegetables have softened, stirring to bring up all the bits left from frying the chops.
Using a potato peeler peel the zest from the lemon and put half to one side for later.
Add the remaining zest and juice of the lemon to the pan, with the anchovy fillets and garlic cloves and stir in.
Increase the heat to medium then add the wine and stir for a couple of minutes.
Add the tomatoes (I usually crush them by hand first) and stock.
Remove the leaves from half the parsley and set aside for later.
Chop finely all the remaining parsley (stalks & leaves) and add to the pan with the thyme.
Season with salt and pepper.
Cook for another five minutes.
Pour the sauce over the top of the chops and cover with kitchen foil
Place in the middle of the oven and cook for three hours, removing the foil after two hours.
Chop together the reserved lemon and parsley leaves.
Serve the chops covered with the sauce and sprinkle over the parsley and lemon mixture.
Great with mashed potatoes.