Autumn food: 5 Shetland recipes to warm up after a day exploring

This recipe from Taste of Shetland is perfect comfort food. It's simple to make and results in a lamb stew with meat that falls apart and warming flavours from the spices. Rhubarb adds a touch of sharpness. Most gardens in Shetland have rhubarb growing somewhere, and this recipe uses up any spare stalks, meaning it's a great warming dish for a cooler early autumn evening.
Ingredients:

• 600g Diced Lamb Shoulder (you could use leg, or neck of lamb)
• Oil for Browning Meat
• 3 Onions (chopped)
• 3 Cloves Garlic (crushed/chopped/sliced)
• 2 tsp Coriandar Seeds
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 2 tsp Cinamon
• 2 tsp Sumac
• 2 tbsp Tomato Puree/Paste
• 2 tsp Sun Dried Tomato Chili Chutney (Optional!!)
• 2 Lamb Stock Cubes
• 500ml Water
• 400g Rhubarb (washed, trimmed and chopped into 2cm pieces)
• 400g Tinned Chickpeas
• 2 tbsp Honey
• 30g Flat Leaf Parsley (chopped)

Instructions:

1. Brown lamb in oil and add to slow cooker. You could use a Dutch oven or large pan, kept at a slow simmer.
2. Add onion, garlic, spices, tomato puree, chutney (if using), stock cubes and water.
3. Cook on high for 4 hours (if using a slow cooker) or simmer for a similar length of time, until the lamb is tender.
4. Add chickpeas, rhubarb, honey and parsley and cook for another hour, or until rhubarb is very soft.
5. Serve with your choice of sides - bulgur wheat and a dollop of Greek yoghurt is worth trying.

Taste of Shetland

Ingredients:

• 1.2kg Uradale Farm Pot Roast Beef
• Half a cup Light Soy Sauce
• 2 tbsp Miso Paste
• 2 tbsp Shetland Honey
• 1 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Garlic Paste
• 3 tbsp Ginger Paste
• 1 tsp Dried Chilli Flakes

Instructions:

1. Get the meat to room temperature and preheat oven to 160°C.
2. Mix all ingredients (except beef).
3. Cut beef in half and place both halves in a lidded, oven-proof dish.
4. Cover in the sauce.
5. Cook for 3 hours at 160°C with lid on.
6. Remove from oven and pull apart with tongs/forks. If it doesn't pull apart easily, return to the oven (with lid) for another 30 mins.
7. Return meat to dish and mix with sauce.
8. Finish in oven at 230°C for 15 minutes. Meat will be crispy in places with a tasty sticky sauce!
9. Serve with rice and green veg or in a brioche bun with coleslaw.

Taste of Shetland

Course: Try this wonderful winter warmer dinner, using Shetland lamb and neeps
Prep Time: 20m
Cook Time: 1hr 20m

Ingredients:

• 1 Large Onion (chopped)
• 3 Cloves Garlic (chopped/crushed)
• 1 tsp Dried Cinnamon
• 1 heaped tsp Oregano
• Half tsp Chilli Flakes
• Additional Greek herbs (optional!)
• 800g Shetland Lamb Mince
• 2 tbsp Tomato Puree
• 2 Tins Chopped Tomatoes
• 600g Shetland Neep (Swede) (very thinly sliced)

For the bechamel sauce:

• 40g Sheltand Butter
• 40g Plain Flour
• 500ml Blue Shetland Milk
• 2 Large Shetland Eggs
• Cheese for topping

Instructions:

1. Prepare/chop all veg.
2. Preheat oven to 180°C.
3. Layer neep in a bowl, add a few tablespoons of water and cover - pop in the microwave for 5 1/2 minutes to soften. Drain and set aside.
4. Brown mince in a frying pan, drain excess fat. Add onion and garlic , and continue to brown.
5. Add spices, herbs, tomatoes and puree. Simmer for 10 mins.
6. In a saucepan, cook off butter and plain flour to form a roux, slowly add milk, whisking as you go. Simmer while stirring for 4/5 minutes until it thickens.
7. Remove from heat and beat in eggs quickly to avoid scrambling!
8. Spray some oil in the bottom of a lasagne-style dish (or grease with butter) and add a layer of neep. Cover with half the mince mixture, then a layer of neep, the rest of the mince, then a layer of neep.
9. Pour bechamel sauce over and top with the grated cheese of your choice.
10. Cover with foil and bake for an hour, then remove foil and bake for another 20 mins to brown the cheese.
11. Before serving, ensure the neep is soft! Delicious served with green salad, garlic bread or crispy tatties!

Taste of Shetland/Becky Robertson

Course: Lunch or Dinner
Servings: 4
Time: 20-30 mins

Ingredients:

• 1kg mussels
• 4 tbsp groundnut oil
• 2 onions, finely chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 1-2 green chillies, finely chopped
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1/2 tsp curry powder
• A pinch of chilli powder
• A pinch of sea salt (optional)
• 1x450g can coconut milk
• 1 tsp brown or black mustard seeds
• A few fresh or dry curry leaves
• 1 x 2cm stick cinnamon
• A pinch of turmeric
• A few washed and chopped coriander leaves, for garnish
• 1 tbsp peeled and grated root ginger

Instructions:

1. Remove the beards, then wash the mussels thoroughly in cold water. Refresh the water and repeat until it is clear. Discard any mussels that are broken or stay open when tapped. After cleaning set them aside.

2. Heat 3 tbsp of the oil on a medium heat and add the onions. Fry them until lightly browned. Tip in the garlic and continue sautéing for a couple of minutes. Add the green chillies and cook for another minute. Add the turmeric, ground coriander, curry powder, chill powder and salt. If using, and mix well.

3. Tip in the coconut milk and stir to combine. Add 125ml or half a cup of water. Put the mussels into the pan and turn up the heat to boil. Then simmer for 2-3 minutes.

4. Meanwhile heat a small frying pan and add the remaining 1 tbsp of oil. To check that the oil is hot enough, add a few mustard seeds. If they start to crackle, add the remainder. Then tip in the cinnamon stick, curry leaves and the pinch of turmeric. Carefully, add the crackling spice mixture to the pan of mussels and combine. Sprinkle over the coriander leaves and the ginger and serve with plain basmati rice.

Manju Malhi - Taste of Shetland

Course: main
Servings: 4-6
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp Shetland butter
• 1 carrot finely diced
• 1 stick celery finely diced
• 1 small onion finely chopped
• 1 leek finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic chopped
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 can chopped tomatoes
• 1 small red pepper finely diced
• Small piece of root ginger finely chopped
• Small piece of red chilli finely chopped
• 1 tsp dried tarragon
• Handful of chopped fresh parsley or dill
• 1 glass dry white wine
• 1.5 pints good fish stock
• Splash of fish sauce
• 500 grams mixed fish (I used a mix of ling, catfish, hake, salmon and smoked haddock)
• Handful of fresh mussels
• Juice of half a lemon
• Salt / pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Heat the oil and butter
2. Add the carrot, celery, onion, leek, garlic and fennel seeds. Cook slowly until vegetables have softened.
3. Add the remaining base ingredients and cook for around 10 - 15 minutes.
4. Season well.
5. Gently add the fish to the sauce along with the lemon juice.
6. Cover and cook gently for a further 10 minutes, adding the mussels for a few minutes at the end.
7. Once the mussels have opened, check the seasoning again before ladling into warmed bowls.
8. Garnish with fresh dill and serve with warm Shetland bannocks and Shetland butter

This is a great recipe to use cheaper varieties of fish. You could reduce the amount of fish you use by substituting it with e.g. diced potatoes and/or chickpeas. You could also add garden peas, topping up with more fish stock as required.