Lamb steak under a herb crust in a Barolo 4-pepper jus with mushroom beans

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 400 g steak(s) (lamb steaks)
• 1 tsp mustard, medium hot
• 50 g butter
• 400 ml Lamb stock
• 100 ml cream
• 1 small shallot(s)
• 40 g butter
• 200 ml red wine (Barolo)
• ½ tsp black peppercorns
• ½ tsp peppercorns, white
• ½ tsp Szechuan pepper
• 1 tsp peppercorns, pink
• 1 tsp instant bouillon (beef or lamb), organic quality
• ½ lemon(s), untreated, organic, juice and zest
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp sea salt, fine
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 sprig(s) rosemary
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 small chili pepper(s), dried
• 2 juniper berries
• 100 g butter
• 3 slices of toast
• 1 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 3 sprigs rosemary
• 4 sprigs of thyme
• 3 sprigs of parsley
• 2 sage leaves
• ½ lemon(s), untreated, organic, peel
• 1 clove(s) garlic
• 1 tsp sea salt, coarse
• Black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 handfuls of chanterelles
• 2 handfuls of mushrooms
• 2 handfuls of green beans
• 1 handful of ice cubes
• 2 m.-large onion(s), red
• 2 large garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 pinch(s) of sugar
• 1 sprig(s) rosemary
• 1 sprig(s) savory
• Salt and pepper, black, freshly ground

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 2 hours; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 3 hours 30 minutes

Low-budget food at its finest

First, make the marinade. Wash the lemon in hot water, halve it, and squeeze the juice. Peel the zest from one half using a zester. Crush the garlic and juniper berries with a knife blade, roughly chop the herbs and chili, and mix all the ingredients together. Wash the lamb steaks, pat dry, and generously coat with the marinade. Wrap in cling film and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for about 2 hours. Cut the 50g butter into thin slices, place on a plate, and freeze. For the herb crust, melt 100g butter. Remove the crust from the toast and finely crumble it. Peel the zest from the other lemon half as well. Finely chop the herbs and garlic, and knead all the ingredients together. Remove the lamb steaks from the marinade, let them drain, and pat them dry. Place in a suitable casserole dish – it shouldn’t be too big – and spread thinly with the mustard. Then spread the herb mixture about 0.5 cm thick over the steaks and refrigerate for about 30 minutes until the jus is ready and the herb crust has hardened. Preheat the oven to 200°C (top and bottom heat). You can also prepare the jus while the steaks are resting. To do this, slowly melt the butter in a saucepan and, meanwhile, finely chop the shallot. Finely grind the various types of pepper in a mortar. Sauté the shallot in the butter for a while, let the butter foam, remove from the heat and stir in the pepper. Immediately deglaze with the Barolo and reduce by half (if you don’t have Barolo on hand, use another good, dry, Italian red wine). Then sprinkle in the stock, pour in the lamb stock and cream and reduce again by at least half. The sauce should be stirred very often. It must not stick under any circumstances, as otherwise the pepper could burn and become bitter – then you can only discard it. Now add a little salt to the sauce if necessary and set aside. Just before serving, bring it quickly to a boil, remove from the heat, and combine with the frozen butter. To do this, gradually melt the frozen butter in the sauce, stirring constantly, and allow it to thicken. Insert a meat thermometer into the center of the thickest part of the lamb. Place the lamb in the oven with the herb layer and bake for about 30 minutes. This will dissolve the butter, run down, and sizzle the lamb steaks, leaving a crispy herb crust on top. Meanwhile, for the mushroom beans, clean the mushrooms, quarter the button mushrooms, and trim the ends of the beans. Bring a little salted water to a boil and cook the green beans for about 8 minutes. In the meantime, place the ice cubes in a bowl and fill it about halfway with cold water. Drain the beans, collect them in a colander, and immediately place them in ice water. This will help them retain their beautiful green color. Cut the red onions into large wedges and roughly chop the garlic. Melt the olive oil and butter in a pan. Finely chop the rosemary and savory, setting aside a small amount. Sauté the onions and sugar in the fat for a while, add the garlic, and let them cook for a bit. Then add the mushrooms to the pan and brown lightly for a few minutes. Finally, stir in the drained beans, sprinkle with herbs, warm, season with salt and pepper, and remove from the heat. Place the plates in the oven for a short time, as the lamb should be cooked through by now, with an internal temperature of approximately 85°C on the meat thermometer. I prefer lamb and have more confidence when it’s just ‘done’ – if you prefer it ‘pink,’ you should slow it down at 60°C at the latest. The crust should be light brown. If it’s not yet, briefly turn on the grill and quickly gratinate it. Pour some of the sauce onto the plates. Carefully remove the meat from the dish, draining some of the butter if necessary, and place it in the sauce. Arrange the mushroom beans around the meat without any fat and garnish with the reserved herbs. Potatoes in almost any form go well with this dish. My favorite is pommes parisienne, but croquettes, fried potatoes, rosemary potatoes, etc. also work very well.