With Easter around the corner, it's the perfect time to feast on succulent lamb - but you don't have to stick to the traditional roast. Ewe could try a tasty tagine, and chops aren't baa-d either, as chef Mark Sargeant tells Keeley Bolger
AFTER months of being cooped up cooking indoors, it's no surprise that Mark Sargeant, restaurant owner and a former head chef for Gordon Ramsay, is pleased that spring has finally sprung.
As well as the promise of leeks, beans and asparagus, the kent-based foodie, who was seen on the first series of ITV reality cooking show Hell's kitchen with his fiery old boss Ramsay, is looking forward to tucking into a succulent lamb lunch with his family this easter - and, if the weather permits, eating it outside.
And while Sargeant loves serving up a traditional roast with all the trimmings, he's hoping that the promise of new-season lamb will encourage more of us to cook the meat regularly, and try some different recipes with it. "Lamb is one of the bestsellers in restaurants, certainly all the restaurants I've ever worked in, whether it's fine dining or not," explains the 40-year-old. "Generally, when people go shopping, they go straight for chicken or beef and still see lamb as an occasion meat. But it's fantastic, available all year round and the cheaper cuts are the best cuts, as long as you know how to use them." Although Sargeant, who rates tenderloins, neck fillets and shoulders as great budget cuts, eats lamb at least once a week, he hasn't tired of the meat yet and will be going all-out so that his family's easter lunch will be extra special. "My eldest daughter turned four in March, so we'll be doing an easter egg hunt for the second year running," he says. "We always have lamb over easter, and my mother-in-law always makes a simnel cake, so we keep it traditional."
If you fancy trying some new twists on lamb classics, here are some of Sargeant's favourites.