Serves 4-6 1kg under shoulder, neck and shin of Lamb (cut into 3-4cm thick pieces) Seasoning: 25g plain flour 40g salted butter, melted 700g onions, thinly sliced 1kg King Edward potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm slices 150ml chicken stock Pickled red cabbage: 1 head of red cabbage, quatered with central stem removed 275 malt vinegar 140ml white wine vinegar 140ml balsamic vinegar 400ml red wine 340g caster sugar 2 star anise 5 bay leaves 10 whole cloves 1 tsp whole black peppercorns 1 stick cinnamon snapped in half 5 whole dried red chillies course sea salt for salting the cabbage
Season the lamb well and dust with the flour. Put the lamb into the base of a hotpot dish…an earthenware dish…approximately 20cm wide and 8cm deep Sweat off the onions in 15g of the butter for 4-5 minutes without colour. Spread the onions evenly on top of the lamb. Toss the potatoes with the remaining 25g of melted butter and seasoning. Put the sliced potatoes evenly on top of the onions reserving the best shaped rounds for the final layer. Cover the hot pot and place in a pre-heated oven for 30 minutes at 180-200 degrees celcius for 30-40 minutes or until the potatoes on top are golden brown. Method for the pickled cabbage Salt the red cabbage well in a colander for 2-3 hours until a deep rich colour is achieved. Rince dry. Place all the vinegars, wine and sugar in a suitable pan and reduce by half. Place all the dry ingredients into a pestle and mortar and coarsely pound. When the reduction is near complete throw in all the dry spices and allow to infuse for 5 minutes. Pass through a fine sieve and while still warm pour onto the red cabbage. By Nigel Haworth/Eblex