
Growing up in the Balkans, lamb was always a staple of every solemn occasion. Getting married? Roast a lamb. Getting divorced? Roast a lamb. Finally graduated college? Roast a lamb. Lost a bet? Pay for the roasted lamb.
Although it’s clear to me why lamb is treasured so much I just find the lack of creativity despairing. So, with the ever rising tide of street food craze I decided to jump the bandwagon with a pulled lamb in brioche. Keeping up with tradition but using a bit more modern techniques.
The meat:

All though I have decided to go for the leg, alternatively neck would be an even better cut for long slow cooking like sous-vide.
The whole idea behind slow cooking, be it sous-vide, braising or stove top simmering is picking the toughest cuts of meat as they are wholesome in connective tissue which is made up of collagen. When put through low heat for a long period of time, collagen breaks up in to gelatin, which makes the meat moist and tender.
Neck, shank, leg and shoulder are the ideal cuts of lamb for slow cooking, and which one you choose for this, or similar recipe is up to you.
As for the cooking process itself, I find sous-vide to be the superior one for pulled lamb as it leaves you with the most delicate and moist results for the meat itself. All the accumulated juices will be used to make a sauce reduction additionally deepening the flavor.
In case you don’t have a sous-vide setup which is more than understandable for a regular household my advice is to sear the seasoned meat (as shown in the recipe below) on a hot pan, then braising for 5-6 hours on very low temperature 140-150*C. Once completely tender and falling off the bones, bake for an additional 20-30 minutes on 170*C.
Pickled onions:

Pickled veggies for me are an essence of street food toppings. their sour but not overwhelming taste balanced with sweetness allows them to pair with any ingredient.
If onions are not your thing, pickled carrots, radish and fennel are all great alternatives, because besides providing a rich taste their crunch also greatly contributes to the texture of the dish.
Tomato Coulis:

Having picked a meat with tremendous aroma, garnished with sourness from the pickled onions and bitterness from the spring onions mayonnaise, we need something to neutralize the strength of all those ingredients, something sweet.
What better to accompany these palates than tomato coulis. Sweetness from the tomatoes is additionally expressed seasoning the coulis with honey.
Spring onion mayonnaise:

Local to my area, or more precisely across the Balkan, there is only one way to eat lamb – Rotisserie. Besides bread, only side dish allowed to accompany this sacred meal is spring onions, eaten with hands, of course.
Trying to recreate a traditional meal in a street food manner I knew I had to incorporate the spring onions in some form. Pickling instead of the onions came to mind, pureeing, frying … and then it hit me from nowhere – spring onions mayonnaise. I was certain this would come out as neat, but I was more than surprised with the outcome. This thing is pure addiction.
