Corned beef

The pie you make when the shepherd comes home to the cottage and has a party.

Posted by Gary

Dear reader,

Last week I cooked a rolled lamb shoulder and still have some of it left in the refrigerator. I thought I’d make a shepherds pie with a difference. It’s traditional to use lamb in a shepherds pie and beef in a cottage pie. 

I have no idea what to call this pie apart from lamb and beef pie topped with mashed potato. 

I hope the title of this post gives you an idea of what was going through my mind.

The reference to a party reflects all the peppercorns I cooked with the lamb last week. I love the way peppercorns create a party in my mouth when I add them to a dish.

I find the almost numbing feeling of the mucosa of my buccal cavity and the soft sensitive epithelium of my lips exciting. Yes, I know I’m a bit of an oddball.

Now you could be asking yourself, it’s November, and I live in Australia, why am I cooking pie when I should be making a salad!

Check out the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology for what’s going on http://www.bom.gov.au/.

Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology Bureau National Operations Centre 

Satellite Notes for 0000UTC Chart Issued at 1433 AEDT Saturday on 13 November 2021

A complex low system is present just off the southeast of the continent. The low-level to middle-level cloud band associated with this system is visible over NSW, Vic and Tas.

A trough extends parallel to the eastern coast of Qld. Thunderstorms also, for northern tropics.

The remainder of the continent is primarily cloud-free, aside from low-level clouds from onshore flow over much of the continent’s southern coast. 

Lamb and corned beef potato mash pie

Ingredients

  • Leftover pressure cooker lamb and peppercorns
  • Tin of corned beef
  • Celery
  • Carrot
  • Onion
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Flour
  • Cooking sherry
  • Instant mashed potato
  • Grated cheese

Instructions

  1. Lovingly sharpen your cook’s knife (as iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend Proverbs 27:17 NLT).
  2. Cut the lamb into small pieces. 
  3. Place the meat into a bowl with some flour and coat the lamb with the white stuff.
  4. Dice the celery, carrot, and onion and set aside.
  5. Warm a skillet and add some cooking oil.
  6. Put the floured meat and peppercorns into the skillet and gently cook to brown it off.
  7. Add in the contents of the tin of corned beef.
  8. Mix everything through until it’s evenly mixed.
  9. Add in the carrot, onion, and celery and allow it all to simmer until the vegetables have cooked through.
  10. Add a splash of cooking sherry and a good slug of Worcestershire sauce.
  11. Evaporate the liquid by simmering everything.
  12. Allow everything to cool in the skillet.
  13. Add a portion to a pie dish and put the rest in another container for another time.
  14. Make the instant potato mash according to the manufacturer’s instructions for use.
  15. Mix some grated cheese into the potato mash and lay it across the top of the pie contents.
  16. Put the pie into a moderate oven and cook until the surface of the potato mash has started to change colour to brown.
  17. Serve the pie however you like and with whatever you like.
  18. Before you eat, though, take the time to give thanks to the Lord and thank Him for his grace.

Thoughts on shepherding

Well, not really about shepherding as much as the inspiration for thinking of shepherds comes from Thursday’s verse of the day in the bible app I use. It was Psalm 23:4. If you want to read some background check out Matthew Henry.

Final thoughts

  • Would you mix your meats in a pie?
  • Do you like lots of peppercorns in your mouth?
  • How do you feel about instant potato mash?
The pie you make when the shepherd comes home to the cottage and has a party

Tinned corned beef with lentils and vegetables

Posted by Gary

Dear Reader,

Canberra has entered its second week of lockdown, and I have mixed feelings about lockdown life.

On the one hand, lockdown life has not been too difficult because I’ve kept my routines. On the other hand, I do miss seeing work friends in real life. I have missed attending our church bible study as well as attending church itself. 

My routines include my morning walk, morning devotion time, making coffee, cooking breakfast, lunch, dinner, and evening devotion time.

Last Sunday, I attended my first Sunday morning church service by Zoom. It was good. While online church service isn’t the same as being with others, it is COVID-19 safe. It was a bit weird singing, praying, and listening to a sermon online.

Saturday lockdown dinner. Corned beef, lentils, slow cooker vegetables, with Brussels sprouts, and roast pumpkin.

Ingredients

  • Corned beef
  • Lentils
  • Shallot
  • Red onion
  • White onion
  • Yellow capsicum
  • Red capsicum
  • Mushrooms
  • Red wine
  • Cooking sherry
  • Worcestershire sauce
  • Olive oil

Instructions

  1. Slice the shallot, onions, and capsicum and put them into a slow cooker with the mushrooms.
  2. Add a few good slugs of olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, red wine, and cooking sherry.
  3. Cook slowly for six hours.
  4. Remove the vegetables from the slow cooker and put them into a skillet, and add a can of washed lentils.
  5. Cook and combine everything thoroughly.
  6. Remove about two-thirds of the vegetables and lentils and put them into a container for use later in the week.
  7. Add a small tin of corned beef to the skillet and cook with the vegetables and lentils.
  8. Cook until the corned meat starts to caramelise.
  9. Serve with vegetables of your choosing.
  10. Give thanks to the Lord for the job to be able to buy food, the skills to prepare and cook food, ask that He nourish my body and mind, and make me a better disciple.

Final thoughts

  • Have you experienced lockdown?
  • How did you find the experience?
  • Do you have any tips?
  • Capsicums, onions, and mushrooms.
  • Saturday lockdown dinner. Corned beef, lentils, slow cooker vegetables, with Brussels sprouts, and roast pumpkin.

Corned beef and red cabbage

Posted by Gary

Wow, it feels like weeks since I’ve written here. I’ve written in other blogs but because I’ve been doing some very long hours, it’s not been easy to plan and cook and write.

Corned beef and red cabbage

Red cabbage

Tonight I went with another almost ‘prepper‘ type meal but it was inspired by a conversation I had with a friend. Conversation with a friend you question? Aren’t we all meant to be social distancing? Well, as I’ve written elsewhere, I prefer the term “physical distancing” so I can remain socially active.

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