Spicy Lamb Mince & Crushed Broad Beans

This is adapted from a recipe in the Telegraph that I saw online recently - that version didn’t use potato but I thought the beans probably needed bulking out and as it turned out I think I was right.  Floury potatoes such as Maris Piper could, I guess, be used instead so that it has more of a fluffy mash consistency but I think the waxiness of the Charlottes goes well with the slightly waxy texture of the beans.  Further additions I made included a dash of wine and a little harissa as well as using less oil as I didn’t think the amounts in the original recipe were necessary.

This could also of course be cooked outside of broad bean season by defrosted some frozen beans and then treating the same as fresh.

Crushed broad beans & Charlotte potatoes with spiced minced lamb
Serves 2

potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
800g broad beans still in their pods
½ tbsp olive oil
picked leaves from 1 small sprig of mint, chopped
sea salt & freshly ground white pepper
1tsp olive oil
200g minced lamb
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
½ small glass white wine
½ tsp rose harissa
salt & freshly ground pepper
leaves from 2 sprigs of dill

Put the potatoes onto boil in salted water and cook until tender.

Pod the beans and cook in boiling water with a pinch of salt for two minutes. Drain and run under cold water to “shock” (halt the cooking process). Pinch out the beans from their pale green outer jackets discarding the skins (or eat them as you go along if you're me).

Mash the potatoes with two-thirds of the beans, the chopped mint, ½ tbsp of olive oil and then season to taste with salt and a little white pepper.

Set to one side to keep warm, as well as the remaining beans in a separate container.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tsp of oil in a pan, then add the lamb. Cook quite gently for about five minutes, breaking up the clusters of mince with a wooden spoon or fork. After about 5 minutes turn the heat up a little for a further five minutes. 

Once the mince is golden, add the spices and garlic and continue to fry, until it is all beginning to crisp and is fragrant, ensuring that the spices don’t get burnt.

Add most of the dill leaves and stir around for a minute before adding the wine and harissa. Let the wine bubble away until reduced right down (a minute or so). Season to taste.

Divide the potato bean mixture between two plates and flatten down slightly in a vaguely circular shape before spooning over the lamb. Scatter the remaining set-aside beans over the lot with the remaining fronds of dill.