Method for the croquettes
1 Pre-heat the oven to 160C/Gas Mark 2½. Heat some olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan or casserole dish with a lid, and add the lamb neck and shoulder on the bone. Brown on all sides, then set aside.
2 Roughly chop 1 onion, 2 carrots and 1 stick of celery.
3 Take the same pan, add a splash of oil and sweat the vegetables over a low heat until they start to release their juices.
4 Add the lamb back into the pan or dish and cover with lamb stock and cook in the oven for approximately 3 hours. It is ready when the lamb falls off the bone when prodded with your finger.
5 Allow to cool in the braising liquid for 30 minutes, then drain, straining the stock into a saucepan, discarding the vegetables. Reduce the braising liquid to a sauce consistency. Once cool, pick the meat off the bone and put it into a large bowl. Cut 3 carrots and 1 onion into 1cm dice. Slowly sweat the onion adding the carrot after 5 minutes. Once the carrot is almost cooked add in the ground cumin and cook for about 4-5 minutes more.
6 Mix together the meat, diced cooked vegetables, the reduced sauce and coriander. Roll into 4 equal balls and place in the fridge for approximately 30 minutes to firm up.
7 Take three shallow bowls or plates. Put the flour in one, in the second put the beaten egg yolk and the cream and put the breadcrumbs in the last one. Take each lamb ball and cover in flour, gently tapping off any excess, then roll in the egg and cream mix, followed by the breadcrumbs, making sure each ball is completely covered.
8 Place in the egg mix again, followed by the breadcrumbs and repeat once more.
9 Heat the vegetable oil in a deep pan at 180C/Gas Mark 4. Deep fry the croquettes until golden, then place back in the oven until piping hot.
Method for the chickpea purée
10 Add a splash of oil to a heavy-bottomed pan and heat over a medium heat.
11 Place half an onion, half a carrot and half a clove of garlic (not chopped or diced so you can remove them later) in a heavy-bottomed pan and sear until golden brown. Add in the chickpeas.
12 Cover with chicken stock. Allow to simmer until cooked – top up with extra chicken stock if required. Remove the vegetables and strain the liquid. Keep a couple of handfuls of chickpeas aside, and, adding a few splashes of sherry vinegar, blend the rest in a blender until smooth and creamy. Season to taste.
To serve
13 Roast and peel the red pepper, removing the skin and seeds and cut into 1cm pieces. Roughly chop the pickled garlic cloves, olives and coriander. Peel the skin off the chickpeas that were set aside earlier.
14 Gently heat the purée until piping hot. Place 1 tablespoon on the bottom of each plate. In another pan heat 30ml of chicken stock and add a small knob of butter, and reduce together until emulsified.
15 Add in the roasted red pepper, olives, pickled garlic, coriander, and peeled chickpeas. Once the garnish is hot and has a nice shine remove it from the heat and spoon on top of the chickpea purée. Place a croquette on each plate and serve with fresh coriander – although for the dish above I have used a coriander foam for extra visual impact.
