Mark Hix recipe: Breast of lamb with chickpeas

Serves 4

Rarely-used cut: Breast of lamb with chickpeas (Jason Lowe)

Breast of lamb is a cut rarely used. Its fattiness puts people off, but slowly cooked, it makes for a tasty, economical meal. You could even stuff it with some minced lamb and offal, if you were feeling adventurous.

1 small onion, peeled, halved and chopped
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed
2tbsp thyme leaves
1tsp ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the sauce

1tbsp vegetable or corn oil
1 onion, peeled, halved and finely chopped
1 stick of celery, peeled and finely chopped
1 clove of garlic, peeled and crushed
A small piece of root ginger (30g) peeled and finely grated
½tsp ground cinamon
1tsp cumin seeds
1 can of chopped tomatoes
½ltr chicken stock
150g soaked and cooked or canned chickpeas, rinsed
2tbsp chopped coriander

Lay the lamb on a work surface and scatter the onion, garlic, thyme and cumin down the centre, then roll up tightly and tie with string every 2-3cm.

Preheat the oven to 220C/gas mark 7. Heat a roasting pan in the oven for 10 minutes, season the lamb; roast for 25-30 minutes, turning every so often. Meanwhile, gently cook the onion, garlic, ginger, celery, cinnamon and cumin seeds in the vegetable oil for a couple of minutes, until they soften. Add the tomatoes and stock, and simmer for 5-6 minutes.

Turn the oven down to 160C/gas mark 3, and continue cooking for another hour. Remove from the oven and drain off any fat, then pour the chickpea sauce over, cover with foil and continue cooking for another hour. Test a piece of lamb by slicing a piece off the end to check if it's tender.

To serve, remove the lamb, allow to cool a little and remove the string. Cut the lamb into 1-2cm-thick slices, arrange on serving plates and pour the sauce over.