Salty and fragrant lamb steaks

Some things sound so wrong they’re right. Telling my friends and family I’d decided to marry a man I’d only known for nine days and that we were planning on trying for a baby immediately sounded wrong, some may say a bit foolish, but it felt so right. Fish and lamb don’t sound like natural bedfellows, but they are! You won’t notice the fish, I promise, other than to add a rich depth of saltiness that regular salt doesn’t achieve.

INGREDIENTS

2 anchovies in oil

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped

or 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary

10 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 lamb steaks

METHOD

Blend the anchovies, the rosemary, garlic and oil in a food processor or with a stick blender until smooth. Tenderise the meat by bashing the steaks with a meat cleaver or rolling pin. Place the steaks in a freezer bag with the marinade, squeeze the air out of it and seal closed. Refrigerate until ready to grill or barbecue, ideally overnight.

For a medium rare steak you will need to grill the lamb for 2 minutes on each side on a very hot grill or barbecue; for well done you will need 4 minutes on each side. I serve this with lots of broccoli and thick, crunchy-skinned jacket potatoes.

IDEAS FOR ANCHOVIES

Anchovies keep in olive oil for a long time; just pop them in the fridge and don’t worry if the oil solidifies – this is only due to the low temperature of the fridge, the anchovies remain fine. Or mash up a few anchovies with leftover fresh herbs like parsley or basil, add crushed garlic, some sliced olives and a little lemon juice and spread over bread before toasting under the grill. Or add a few finely chopped anchovies to a pan with a 400 g tin of tomatoes, a slug of olive oil, a little garlic and a tablespoon of sugar and simmer very gently for an hour; serve stirred into pasta with a little grated Parmesan on top.

#normalmum #anchovies #lamb #rosemary #garlic