Lamb from Northern Ireland is the most natural of meats that we have

Love Lamb Week runs from the 1st to the 7th of September. It was started by Cumbrian based sheep farmer, Rachel Lumley to highlight how tasty, versatile and easy lamb is to cook with.
By The Newsroom
Published 4th Sep 2021, 12:00 GMT
Sheep roam wild on hillsides eating the local scrub and benefitting from the elements. 70% of UK sheep live on land we can’t grow crops on, like mountains and hills. It gives the lamb a delicate, sweet tastewSheep roam wild on hillsides eating the local scrub and benefitting from the elements. 70% of UK sheep live on land we can’t grow crops on, like mountains and hills. It gives the lamb a delicate, sweet tastew
Sheep roam wild on hillsides eating the local scrub and benefitting from the elements. 70% of UK sheep live on land we can’t grow crops on, like mountains and hills. It gives the lamb a delicate, sweet tastew

Out of the home nations Northern Ireland consumes the least amount of lamb with the Republic of Ireland eating the most.

Lamb from Northern Ireland is the most natural of meats.

Sheep roam wild on hillsides eating the local scrub and benefitting from the elements. 70% of UK sheep live on land we can’t grow crops on, like mountains and hills. It gives the lamb a delicate, sweet taste.

There are many misconceptions about lamb.

One is that it takes a long time to cook.

We think we have to buy a whole leg and roast it but the reality is, like other meats, it has cuts that are quick to cook. The first recipe is for Lebanese 7 spiced lamb and it’s quick, easy and tasty. You can use lamb chops or leg steaks. It’s enveloped in aromatic spices and then grilled. It shouldn’t take more than 10 minutes to cook plus a bit of resting time – same length of time it takes to boil some pasta…..It’s accompanied by a late season tomato salad. Tomatoes are coming to the end of their run now and are full of flavour having benefited from sunshine and steamy rain.

Their zinginess is perfect to cut through the rich meat. A blob of local yoghurt whizzed with mint completes the dish.

Shepherd’s Pie is a classic dish that uses lamb mince topped with potatoes. While we’re on the theme of using spices with lamb, I’ve added harissa to the mix. You can buy this middle eastern roasted pepper and spice blend but making your own is much nicer. Instead of regular mash on top, there’s some roasted butternut squash in the mix. The sweetness of the squash is cut through with the spicy meat.

For Open Farm Weekend this year I did some cooking videos from the Matthew’s Redspark lamb farm in the Glens of Antrim. You can check out the videos on the Open Farm Weekend website. You can order Glenarm Redspark lamb from their website glenarmredsparklamb.com.

I’ll be cooking Glens of Antrim rump of lamb in my new TV series “Paula McIntyre’s Hamely Kitchen” which starts on BBC 1 at 7.30Pm on Monday, the 6th September and you’ll find all the recipes from the series on the BBC website. It’s a celebration of food from here and was filmed on the north coast.

So that’s at least five recipes to try using lamb from here. No excuses….

Related topics:Northern IrelandSheepRepublic of Ireland