Yummy Homemade Lamb Ravioli Recipe

The best part about my job is that I get access to all these new recipes from international food exporters and suppliers. Recently, Meat and Livestock Australia,  released their exclusive Autumn edition of  - Chef's Special - and I just wanted to spread the gourmet love and share a yummy recipe I found there. 

Braised Lamb Ravioli with Caramelized Onions

- makes servings for a whole party. I'm talking maybe 40 plates...

So the next time your hosting a dinner and you don't wanna make the usual kinds of pasta, make lamb ravioli just because it's impressive. Not anyone would dare tackle lamb because of the reputation it gets from not being cooked right. But if you get your meat from a good supplier and you know how to prepare it, you'll really appreciate its subtler, tastier flavors.

Caramelized Onions

1/4 cup olive oil

3 medium onions

7 sprigs thyme tied in a bundle

Ravioli Dough

2 cups semolina

2 eggs

pinch of salt

few teaspoons water to bind

semolina for dusting

Lamb Filling

1 kg lamb neck roast, bone in

2 tbsp vegetable oil

3 shallots, peeled and chopped finely

2 whole cloves of garlic

1 cup port

(it's a kind of sweet red wine originally from "Port"-ugal but is now produced around the world)

1 cup red wine

(try a powerful, full bodied red like Benchmark Shiraz. It's only P360 in Wine Depot.)

4 cups beef or veal stock

4 sprigs of thyme

2 bay leaves

1 cup diced tomatoes

FOR THE LAMB FILLING:

- Preheat oven to 350F

- Trim excess fat from Lamb neck and season with salt and pepper

- Heat oil in a deep pan on medium high

- Sear neck until brown on all sides then set aside.

- Pour off all but 2 tbsp fat from pan then lower heat to medium

- Add shallots and garlic. Cook for 2 mins.

- Add port wine, stirring to deglaze, then add stock thyme, bay leaves and lamb.

- Bring to a boil

- Cover sauce pan with foil then pierce 6 times to make holes

- Place in the oven and bake for 3-4 hours. Turn meat occasionally

- Remove from oven and allow to cool

TO MAKE CARAMELIZED ONIONS
- Heat oil in large saucepan on medium

- Saute onions and thyme until onions are soft and transparent

- Increase heat to medium-high and cook constantly stirring

- When onions are dark brown, remove from heat and discard thyme

- Season with salt and pepper, cool and then place in airtight container and refrigerate until needed

- Reduce the jus by 1/3

- Chop up shredded lamb then combine with 3/4 of the caramelized onions, 5 tbsp jus, then season with salt, pepper and fresh thyme.

To make sauce, puree the tomatos and combine with remaining jus. Season with salt, pepper and thyme.

TO MAKE RAVIOLI

- Combine semolina with 2 eggs and a pinch of salt until it gets a little course

- Add water a teaspoon at a time until dough stays together and can be kneaded

- Knead dough until elastic and a bit soft

- Divide into 2 portions, roll out each into a sheet with a roller, or  run through a pasta machine if you have one 

- Measure out tablespoons of the lamb filling out enough to press the top portion of the dough down between each piece

- Be sure to brush egg wash all around each mound of filling so the dough will adhere to itself to form a ravioli

- Using a knife, separate the ravioli, then press and fold edges until they're secured.

- Cook ravioli in a large pot of boiling, salted water until al dente. 

- Use caramelized onions as edible garnish

Serve this with your bottle of Shiraz and you'll be fending off hungry guests soon enough!