Slow Cooked Beef Brisket, Moroccan Spiced Lamb & Pork Sausage Stew

This is the second part of a Slow Cooker Recipe Development project I've undertaken for Quality Meat Scotland and the Good Family Food Facebook Page. You can find the first three recipes - Lamb Shanks with Red Wine and Butter Beans, Beef with Sweet Potato and Chorizo and Pork, Pumpkin, Apple & Ginger Casserole - on this blog post. Below are the final three recipes in the series using Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.

Slow Cooked Scotch Beef Brisket with Beer & Barley

Serves 4, with leftovers

INGREDIENTS

1kg Scotch Beef Brisket

3 large Potatoes

2 Onions

1 large Carrot

¼ Neep/Swede

50g Pearl Barley

500ml Dark Ale

2 cloves Garlic - crushed

Salt & Pepper

2 Tbsp Soy Sauce

2 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

METHOD

Thinly slice the potatoes and onions and layer them alternately in the bottom of the crock pot. Place the brisket on top of this base.

Peel and cube the carrot and neep and add them along with the pearl barley to the slow cooker around the sides of the joint of beef. 

Crush the garlic and rub it over the top of the brisket, then season it with salt and pepper. 

Pour the dark ale over the vegetables around the meat. Mix together the Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce and spoon over the brisket. 

Put the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

This dish is a meal in itself and the leftover brisket can be used cold in sandwiches or to make wonderful stovies.

Slow Cooked Pork Sausage, Cranberry & Green Lentil Stew

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

12 Pork Sausages

180g Bacon Lardons (or streaky bacon)

Salt & Pepper

1 large Carrot

1 Onion

2 Cloves Garlic - crushed

410g Tin of Green Lentils (drained)

500ml Pork or Chicken Stock

2Tbsp Cranberry Sauce

Fresh Thyme

Crème Fraiche to taste

METHOD

If desired, brown the sausages in a frying pan. This is purely for looks so the choice is yours. Put the sausages in the crock pot along with the bacon lardons (or finely chopped streaky bacon) Season well with salt and pepper.

Peel and cube the onion and carrot, crush the garlic and add to the slow cooker along with the contents of the drained tin of green lentils.

Make up 500ml of lamb or chicken stock, add a couple of heaped Tablespoons of Cranberry sauce, stir well and pour it all into the slow cooker.

Finally nestle in a couple of sprigs of Thyme and put the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

Remove the thyme sprigs before serving and if desired stir through some crème fraiche for a creamy finish. Serve alongside lots of crusty bread to soak up the juices. 

Slow Cooked Moroccan Spiced Lamb with Apricots, Lentils and Almonds

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

600g Cubed Scotch Lamb 

Salt & Pepper

1 Onion

2 Cloves Garlic - crushed

1 x 400g Tin Peeled and Chopped Tomatoes

150g Ready-to-eat Dried Apricots

75g Red Lentils

25g flaked almonds

500g Lamb or Chicken Stock

2 tsp Turmeric

2 tsp Cinnamon

1tsp Cumin

1tsp Coriander

Fresh Coriander to serve

METHOD

Season the cubed lamb with salt and pepper and place it in the slow cooker crock pot. 

Peel and slice the onions, crush the garlic and add to the slow cooker along with the contents of the tin of chopped tomatoes.

Chop the dried ready-to-eat apricots into halves or thirds, remember that they will swell up during cooking. Add them to the dish along with the flaked almonds and the lentils. The lentils will act as a thickener.

Make up 500ml of lamb or chicken stock and pour into the slow cooker.

Finally add the spices and give everything a thorough stir.

Put the lid on the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.

Serve sprinkled with chopped fresh coriander on a bed of Cous Cous to soak up the delicious spiced juices.

I'm linking this post up with the Lavendar & Lovage Cooking with Herbs blogger challenge. The theme this month is Store Cupboard Basics and Essentials. Plenty of those in all the recipes above including tinned tomatoes, red lentils, pearl barley, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, green lentils and cranberry sauce. 

Disclosure - QMS commissioned me and compensated me for my time in creating Slow Cooker recipes for their Good Family Food Facebook page. All views expressed are my own.