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navarin d agneau

Lamb

Navarin d’Agneau

By Raymond Blanc

Browned lamb shoulder cooks slowly with tomatoes, garlic and garden vegetables, making a rich sauce scented with rosemary and thyme. Carrots and onions bring sweetness, and optional green or black olives add a salty contrast to the tender meat. Bring the casserole straight to the table, with boiled new potatoes or crusty bread for the sauce. A red Rioja or Côtes du Rhône goes well alongside.

Prep
20 min
Cook
2 hr 30 min
Total
Not stated
Serves6–8
Jump to recipe ↓Country & Town House ↗

Ingredients

Lamb and vegetables

Optional finish

Method

  1. Peel onions and garlic. Chop onion, carrots and celery into 2 cm pieces; quarter tomatoes and drain optional olives.
  2. Cut lamb into 3–4 cm pieces; season with salt and pepper. Heat oven to 170°C / 338°F, or 150°C / 302°F fan.
  3. Heat half the oil over medium-high heat. Brown lamb in two batches, 6–8 minutes each; transfer to a plate.
  4. Heat remaining oil over medium heat. Cook onion, garlic, carrot and celery five minutes. Add tomatoes, optional olives, thyme and rosemary; cook five minutes. Season.
  5. Stir in flour and cook two minutes. Return lamb and juices, add stock, mix and cover. Bake on the middle shelf two hours.
  6. Scatter with optional chopped parsley and serve from the casserole.

Equipment

Large casserole or sauté pan, about 30 cm diameter; Lid or foil; Knife and chopping board; Large plate or bowl; Oven

Notes

  • Browning: give the lamb room in the pan and cook it in two batches. Keep the juices on the plate and return them to the casserole with the meat.
  • Vegetables and flour: soften the onion, garlic, carrot and celery before adding the tomatoes and herbs. Stir in the flour and cook it for two minutes before adding the stock.
  • Olives and parsley: green or black olives work; drain them first. Both the olives and the final scattering of parsley are optional.
  • Cooking time: allow the published 2½ hours for cooking, including the two-hour covered oven stage. Foil can stand in for a casserole lid.
  • Serving: bring the casserole to the table with boiled new potatoes or crusty bread. A red Rioja or Côtes du Rhône goes well alongside.

Photos

1 photo
Raymond Blanc’s lamb navarinFinished dishRaymond Blanc’s lamb navarin

Navarin d’Agneau

Recipe photos

About this dish

Navarin is a French stew of lamb or mutton with vegetables. Its name is linked to navet, French for turnip, though another story takes it out to sea.

Legend has it that, after the Battle of Navarino in 1827, Admiral de Rigny ordered a better meal for his sailors. Aboard the Trident, the cook replaced the rice in a lamb stew with turnips and potatoes.

Raymond Blanc’s version comes from Simply Raymond Kitchen Garden, a book shaped by the garden at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons. Tomatoes, garlic, rosemary and thyme give it its character, with olives if you like them. Browning the lamb develops the sauce’s savoury flavour; softening the vegetables in the same pan brings sweetness. The flour is cooked with the vegetables before the stock goes in, giving the sauce body during the long, covered braise.

Recipe and cooking notes adapted from Country & Town House.