Lamb with lettuce, spinach and egg and lemon sauce (fricasse in Greek)

LAMB WITH LETTUCE, SPINACH AND EGG AND LEMON SAUCE

(Lamb with lettuce and spinach, fricassee, in Greek)

I describe two different ways of making the fricassee.

The two methods differ only in the way that the meat is cooked. All the other steps are the same on both recipes.

 (Recipe for 6 people)

Ingredients

2kg lamb or baby goat (The most suitable part of the animal is the neck and the front leg cut into medium size pieces. The lamb must be very fresh, because the stale lamb has an unpleasant odor).

180 grams of olive oil

2 large onions

1 medium potato

1.5 kg purified spinach or 2 pounds gross

4 large lettuces

1 bunch dill

2 large eggs

2 lemons,

Some olives for the decoration,

Salt to taste

Very little red hot pepper

1 teaspoon coriander motes

Instructions

The meat for fricassee should be cut into small pieces.

It is good to have each piece approximately the size of a medium mandarin.

Some Super Market sell mutton purified from bones.

If you buy boneless meat, 1.5kg is enough.

Put 4 glasses of water in a pot.

Put the pot on high heat.

Wait for the water to boil.

Chop the onions and put them in the pot.

Let the onions cook 2-3 minutes.

Thoroughly wash the lamb with water.

Look carefully to see if there are any small broken bones on the meat. If you find any take them off.

Put the meat in the pot with the onions and wait until it begins to boil.

Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat and simmer.

If the meat is cooked in medium heat, it becomes tastier.

Cooking for 1-1.5 hour is sufficient to soften the meat.

Stir occasionally and check if there are enough liquids in the pot.

If the broth is very little, add some boiling water in the pot.

The fricassee isn’t a soup. It does not need too much of broth.

When you think that the meat is ready, is time to check if it is soft.

Nail a fork into the meat.

If the fork goes easily into the meat and the meat unsticks from the bones, it is time to add the vegetables.

If the fork finds resistance to get into the meat and the meat does not unstick from the bones, it needs more cooking. .

Let the meat simmer until it becomes soft and tender.  

Add salt if necessary and put very little red chili pepper.

While you boil the meat, prepare lettuce, spinach and dill.

From dill usually use the leaves.

The stalks are sometimes soft, sometimes dry.

Single dried stalks and discard them.

Chop finely the tender stalks and put the pieces in the food, because they add flavor.

Wash the dill in plenty of water, two or three times, and leave it aside.

If you buy washed and purified spinach, then just rinse it once, to refresh it.

If you buy gross fresh spinach, then scour it.

There is soil hidden between the stems of the leaves and the roots. 
Cut the roots of each spinach and discard it.

Spinach needs good washing in plenty of water.

To be sure that all the dirt is gone, wash the spinach at least four times changing the water each time.

Cut each leaf of the spinach in 2-3 pieces and let them aside.

Remove the yellow dried leaves from the lettuce.

Fill a big bowl with water. Put in it some salt and vinegar and submerge the leaves of lettuce.

Let the leaves briefly dipped into the water, to loosen all the small bugs on them.

Wash them at least three times, each time changing the water.

Cut each leaf in four pieces.

Clean the potato washed it and cut it into dices.

When the meat is tender, take a slotted spoon and remove it from the pot. Place the meat on a platter,
cover it and leave it aside.  

Taste a small piece of meat. If it needs more salt, add some.

Chop finely the dill in the pot with the boiling broth of the meat.

Add in the pot the pieces of spinach and lettuce and stir.
Let those vegetables to boil for 3 minutes.

Add the pieces of the potato and stir well.

Let the vegetables cook until they become soft.

Add some salt.

When the vegetables are ready, put the meat back into the pot and boil them all together for 5 minutes.

 Squeeze 1.5 lemons.

Put two eggs in a bowl and beat them with a whisk.

Pour the lemon juice little by little in the bowl with the eggs and at the same time continue beating the eggs.

With a soup ladle take hot broth from the pot and pour it in the bowl with the eggs little by little while beating.

Repeat this step 3-4 times.

So add enough hot broth into the eggs to get them cooked and yet remain a velvet sauce.

Take the pot from the heat and leave it aside.

Uncover the pot and pour in slowly the eggs and lemon sauce while stirring.

Give the eggs the time they need to mix with the lemon and become a tasteful sauce.

Tilt the pan to the side so the sauce goes everywhere.

Second way of cooking the meat

Put in a saucepan the oil and add chopped onions.

Put the pot over medium heat and let the onions sauté.

Put the meat into the pot and mix it with the onions.

Stir well so all the meat gets olive oil.

Lower the heat and let the meat simmer.

If the maximum of your appliance is 6, turn the indicator to 2.

Add salt, ground black pepper or a very small piece of red chili pepper.

Stir frequently.

The meat releases its fluids and cooks in them.

Let the meat simmer until soft.

Remove meat to a platter and continue as before.

Whichever way you choose  to make your fricassee it will come out delicious.

You can make the fricassee with lettuce only or with spinach only or solely with artichokes.