Swell's lamb and barley soup

Photo by Craig Baxter.

For the lamb:
4 lamb shanks
1 carrot, cut into chunks
1 onion, cut into chunks bunch celery, cut into chunks
5 cloves garlic, crushed tsp fresh thyme tsp fresh rosemary
3 bay leaves
1 tsp peppercorns
1 Tbsp brown sugar
500ml red wine
500ml water or light beef or chicken stock
1 Tbsp salt

Put all the ingredients in a baking pan.
Cover and braise for 3-4 hours at 150degC, or until the meat falls off the bones.
When cooked, separate the meat from the bone, shred, cover and keep aside.
Strain the liquid and keep aside.

To make the soup:
2 carrots
2 onions bunch celery
300g pumpkin
300g zucchini
300g potatoes
200g bacon
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 cup barley tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 litre water or light beef or chicken stock
salt and pepper to taste.

Dice all the vegetables and bacon into 1cm pieces.
Heat oil in a large pot, and saute vegetables and bacon for 2-3 minutes.
Add barley and thyme and cook another 2-3 minutes.
Add strained liquid from the lamb shanks and water or stock.
Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer for an hour.
Add the shredded meat.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with a sprinkling of chopped chives.

- Requested by Leone Loeber of Dunedin.

- Recipe from Kwon Pil Oh, head chef at Swell Cafe and Bar at St Clair, Dunedin.

If you have enjoyed a dish in an Otago cafe or restaurant and would like the recipe, write to Ask a Chef, Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin, or email odt.features@odt.co.nz, including your name, address and a daytime telephone number, and we will request it.