Pink peppercorn goat leg with fennel salad and green apple

For 2 people.

Difficulty: low.

Cooking time: Just about 10-15 minutes.

Ingredients:

For the goat:

– 2 goat legs.

– 2 spoonfuls of EVOO.

– 1 spoonful of pink pepper grains.

– 1/2 spoonful of black pepper grains.

– 1 spoonful of salt flakes (or 1/2 spoonful of table salt instead).

– 250 ml of water.

For the salad:

– 1/2 fennel root.

– 1/2 Granny Smith apple.

– 1 handful of baby spinach leaves.

– 2 spoonfuls of pomegranate seeds.

– The rind of half a small lemon (preferably if the peel is green).

For the vinaigrette:

– 2 spoonfuls of oil.

– 1 drizzle of lemon juice.

– A few drops of sherry vinegar.

– A couple of sprigs of fennel root, very finely chopped.

– Freshly ground salt and pepper.

Cooking method:

For the meat:

We leave the goat out of the fridge for one or two hours before starting so that the inside of it is at room temperature.

We preheat the oven to 250ºC with the heat on above and beneath it without the fan.

We crush in the grinder the two types of pepper with the salt, it doesn’t have to be very fine; we add the oil to this mixture and use it as a rub throughout the whole surface of the lamb.

We place the 2 legs on a large tray with the fleshiest bit (the outside part) facing downwards, we add the wáter (without wetting the meat) and we put it in the oven, lowering the temperature of it to 170ºC. We keep it like that for 30 minutes.

30 minutes later we moisten the goat with the liquid from the container thoroughly submerging the whole surface. We keep baking it.

15 minutes later we repeat the previous step.

After another 15 minutes we turn the legs over, we moisten them and leave them in for 30 more minutes, increasing the oven temperature to 210ºC, moistening it halfway through once again (15 minutes in).

We turn the pieces of meat over for the last time carefully so that they do not slide off the bone, we moisten them (the juices will already be oily), we keep it in for 10 more minutes and then it is ready to be served.

For the salad:

We chop the fennel and the apple as finely as possible (ideally making them almost see through) with help of a slicer or a ham cutter.

We place this in a large bowl with the pomegranate, spinach and the green lemon rind.

We whip up the vinaigrette and we dress the salad just before serving the salad; this is key to avoid “boiling” the vegetables so that they stay crunchy.

Notes:

** The temperatures are the same, but the timings may vary depending on the oven. As with all roasts we must apply the rule: “every oven is a world of its own”.

** If you notice that the liquid is disappearing too quickly, you can add some more water or even put a container filled with water in the bottom of the oven so as to boost its moistness. This works very well for the meat.

** If you do not have pink pepper, it does not matter; the final results will be just as tasty, although the aroma it gives off is very interesting.

** The salad has a very original flavour, and it compliments and adds a perfect contrast to the roast meat. You can accompany the goat with anything else you fancy, like mash potato or fennel, or some ready salted crisps, but if you try the salad, it will definitely be your go to choice when you have guests over. You will love it.

Photos and recipe: cocinaDsastre.

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