Slow Roast Shoulder of Lamb Gravy

A shoulder cooked for six hours falls apart and leaves behind a tin of soft vegetables and a deep, fatty, powerfully savoury liquid. There is no fond to scrape because everything has been wet, so the gravy is made by skimming and reducing instead. It is the easiest good gravy on this list and the one that needs the most patience.

Ingredients

Makes about 500ml of concentrated gravy

• 1 litre (1 3/4 pints) liquor from the lamb tin with the roasted onions, garlic and carrots
• 150ml (5fl oz) white wine or the liquid the lamb was cooked in
• 1 1/2 tbsp (20g) plain flour
• 2 tbsp lamb fat, skimmed from the liquor
• 1 tbsp redcurrant or quince jelly
• 1 tsp sherry vinegar
• salt and black pepper

Kit

• Large jug or fat separator
• Wide saucepan
• Sieve
• Ladle

Method

1. Lift the shoulder out with two big spoons, since it will be too soft to move with a fork. Sit it on a warm dish, cover loosely and leave it alone for half an hour. It will hold its heat for a long time.

2. Pour everything left in the tin through a sieve into a tall jug, pressing the vegetables hard with a ladle so their sweetness goes through. Then leave the jug to stand for ten minutes.

3. Skim carefully. There will be a thick layer of lamb fat, sometimes two centimetres of it, and almost all of it has to go. Keep two tablespoons for the roux and pour the rest away or save it for potatoes.

4. Put the dark liquor underneath into a wide pan with the wine and boil it hard, uncovered, for ten to twelve minutes until it has reduced by about half and tastes concentrated rather than watery.

5. In a separate small pan, heat the two tablespoons of reserved lamb fat, stir in the flour and cook for two minutes until sandy and golden.

6. Ladle the hot reduced liquor into the roux a little at a time, whisking constantly. Because the liquor is already full flavoured, a small amount of flour is all it needs.

7. Simmer for six or seven minutes. Stir in the jelly until it melts and add the sherry vinegar, then taste. Six hours of cooking concentrates salt, so it may need none at all.

8. Skim once more before serving. A slow roast gravy will always throw up a little more fat as it sits, so give it a final pass with a spoon just before it goes to the table.

Tips worth knowing

• Chill the strained liquor for twenty minutes if you have the fridge space and the time. The fat sets into a solid disc you can lift off in one piece, which is far more thorough than skimming.
• Cook the shoulder over onions, garlic and a splash of stock covered with foil, then uncover for the last hour. That gives you liquor and colour both.
• This gravy reduces to something quite strong. Have a little hot water or stock beside you so you can pull it back if it goes too far.
• The soft roasted garlic from the tin can be pushed through the sieve into the gravy and it will thicken it slightly as well as sweetening it.

Keeping and reheating

Keeps four days in the fridge and freezes for three months. The reduced version freezes especially well and can be diluted with stock when you use it. Lift off any set fat before reheating.

Questions people ask