Gnocchi with Lamb Ragu

Cook Time 2 hours

Servings 4-6

Ingredients

1.5kg Desiree potatoes, roughly the same size

80g finely grated parmesan cheese plus extra to serve

150g (1 cup) Tipo 00 plain flour, plus extra for dusting

1 whole egg

1 egg yolk

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and pepper

Lamb Ragu

1 tbsp olive oil

1.2kg lamb shoulder, diced

1 onion, diced

1 carrot, finely diced

2 celery sticks, finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, chopped

3 sprigs each of thyme and sage, tied together with 3 bay leaves

1 tbsp tomato paste

¾ cup red wine

¼ cup red wine vinegar

2 x 400g canned whole peeled tomatoes

500ml beef stock

Method

Season lamb with salt and pepper. Add oil to a large casserole pot and seal in batches over a high heat. Remove meat and set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium and brown the onion, carrot, celery and garlic to soften, about 5 minutes. Now deglaze with wine and vinegar and bring to a boil before adding the tomato paste, tomatoes, stock and herbs. Season again with salt. Return the lamb to the pan, put the lid on and cook on a medium-low heat for 2 hours or until the meat is meltingly tender and the sauce is thick and rich.

For the gnocchi, place the potatoes in their skins into a pot and cover generously with water. Bring to a gentle boil and cook for 25 - 30 minutes (this will depend on the size of your potatoes), or until tender when pierced with a skewer. Drain and allow the steam to dissipate in the colander for a few minutes.

They will still be hot, so hold the potatoes and peel off the skins using a tea towel. In batches, rice the potatoes through a ricer or grate on a box grater, onto a clean surface (alternatively use a masher). Make a mound of potatoes, hollow out the centre, and crack the egg in. Sprinkle over salt, pepper, nutmeg, parmesan and 3/4 of the flour (you may need a little more or less, depending on the moisture in the potatoes). Lightly knead ingredients together to form a soft dough. Be careful not to overwork, as this will create dense gnocchi. The aim is to make them light and fluffy.

At this stage, I like to gently boil a small pot of water and test a piece of gnocchi. Once it floats to the surface it is cooked. Taste and check seasoning and texture. If they are falling apart don’t worry, you just need to incorporate a little more flour into the dough.

Dust the work surface with extra flour and then divide the dough into 4 even portions. Roll out into 1 cm-thick sausages and then cut into 1.5 cm pieces. Arrange gnocchi in a single layer on a tray dusted with a little more flour. Cover with cling film and refrigerate until ready to use.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Cook gnocchi in batches for 2 - 3 minutes or until they rise to the surface. With a slotted spoon remove and add to the sauce. Gently toss through the lamb ragu and serve with shallow bowls with extra parmesan.