Five hour lamb

I found this recipe in a little column in The Times and have made it many times.  It only takes a few minutes to prepare and is rich and delicious and perfect for a winter's evening.  I use a whole bottle of good red wine and about 1 litre of stock but the quantities will depend on the size of your pot.

Five hour lamb

Take a leg of lamb, put it in a pot with some chunks of veg - potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, fennel, turnip - whatever you like, add some herbs (rosemary and thyme are good), some pepper and some cloves of garlic.  Pour in enough red wine and stock to come about half way up the pot, put the lid on and cook at 160C for five hours.  The liquid will reduce naturally until it’s sticky and gorgeous and the meat falls off the bone.  Check it after four hours to make sure there is enough liquid.  If you haven’t put potatoes in with the veg serve with a big bowl of mashed potato - or serve it out of the pot just as it is.