Slow Braised Lamb Shoulder Penne Pasta Ragu with Cheddar Shards

Winter
Family Meals

2 hr
Serves 2
Moderate

Big batch recipes have never been tastier. Add some finesse with these cheddar shards and don't be afraid to tailor the recipe for leftover lamb too, it's a great one to use up the last of a roasting joint.

Ingredients

2 tbsp Olive oil
500g Lamb shoulder, cut into chunks
100g Smoked Bacon, diced
2 Celery sticks, diced
2 Carrots, diced
1 Onion, diced
1 tbsp Oregano
3 Garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp Tomato purée
800g Tinned tomatoes
250ml Red wine
750ml Chicken stock
400g Penne pasta
60g Yeo Valley Organic Mature Cheddar, grated
Parsley, chopped to garnish

Method

Cheddar shards

Add grated cheese to a lined flat baking tray and bake in 180C for 8 minutes. Allow the cheese to cool and then break up into shards

Lamb ragu

Heat the oven to 160C.
Heat a casserole pot up and add 2 tbsp olive oil.
Brown the lamb on all sides, in batches and set aside.
Cook the bacon in the same pan for 4 minutes.
Add the diced vegetables and cook for a further 5 minutes. Add the oregano, crushed garlic and tomato purée and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add all of the liquid and the lamb back into the pan
Cook in an ovenproof dish at 160C for 1.5 hours until the lamb is tender and falls apart. If the lamb still feels a bit tough, put it back in the oven for a further 30 minutes. Do not turn the heat of the oven up.
If you are cooking the ragu the day before, allow it to totally cool down before putting it in the fridge.
When ready to eat, heat the ragu sauce to a simmer.
Cook the pasta to the method on packet. Add the cooked pasta to the ragu sauce with a ladleful of the pasta water and the butter. Toss to combine everything. Add a little more pasta water if you want the sauce to coat the pasta.
Plate up and top with chopped parsley and the cheddar shards.