Collaborative Cooking: Spicy Korean Lamb BBQ (without the BBQ)

This showstopper Korean lamb is fresh, flavourful and so easy to cook up with friends. While someone fries off the mince others can cut and prep the sides, all ready to load into lettuce or mustard leave cups – delicious!

 

Serves 6
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes

 

Ingredients
800g lamb mince
2 garlic cloves, grated
1 inch ginger, grated
2 1/2 tbsp. Gochujang (Korean chilli paste or similar chilli paste)
2 1/2 tbsp. light soy sauce
1 tbsp. brown sugar
2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar (or white vinegar)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil

Accompaniments:
200g glass noodles
1 x iceberg lettuce, whole leaves washed
1 x bunch mustard leaves, whole leaves washed
250g diakon, sliced into thin rounds
3 x Lebanese cucumbers, julienne
Kimchi
Bunch of enoki mushrooms, remove woody bottom
250g bean sprouts, blanched in hot water and drained
1 tbsp. chilli paste
1 tbsp. sesame oil

Method

Combine the lamb mince along with other ingredients and mix well.
In a hot wok or non-stick frypan, place a touch of vegetable oil and fry half the lamb mince. Once golden and looking amazing, remove and fry the second batch.
In the meantime, pour boiling water over your noodles and steep for 5 minutes or until just cooked through. Drain and refresh under cold water to stop the cooking process. Drain again, and set aside.
On a large board, or many small plates (Korean style) arrange all accompaniments to go with your yummy lamb. Mix chilli paste and sesame oil together to create a little dipping sauce.
To eat, grab yourself an iceberg leaf or mustard leaf, add a little of everything and devour.

Tips:
Not only is this dish perfect for cooking with friends but it's an easy midweek option too. You can freeze the mince mixture either before it's cooked or after, then simply fry off or reheat when you get those Korean cravings.
The lamb mixture is also delicious cold - any leftover mince can be added to a Bánh mì or wrap for a tasty lunch.

Come Lamb With Me

Australians love coming together over Lamb, whether it is barbecued lamb chops with friends or a spiced lamb salad shared over lunch, Lamb is the one dish that can bring everyone to the table, no matter how diverse their background or culture.

Across the country, we're also hosting modern dinner parties, infusing new flavours and themes with the traditions of the past. Gone are the days of formal sit down dinners, with hosts spending hours in the kitchen, traded instead for informal gatherings, culinary challenges and collaborative cooking.

Former MasterChef contestant and Instagram foodie, Sara Oteri, has created three delicious Australian Lamb recipes inspired by the latest dinner party trends.

Trend: Weeknight entertaining
Weeknight entertaining is the new weekend dinner party, with Wednesday being the night of choice to catch up with friends at home. With young Australians more time poor than ever, hosts are opting for authentic and traditional food that is easy to prepare instead of a three-course meal. Sara's recipe of pull apart sweet potato with diced lamb leg and green olive tapenade is simple to create and can accommodate any dinner party size.

Trend: Collaborative cooking
Collaborative cooking is an emerging trend being embraced by millennials, eager to connect with one another over food and escape the routine and stress of every day life. By sharing in the preparation and cooking of meals together, dinner transforms into a collaborative journey to feast rather than one person stressing over the cooking. Sara's spiced lamb pita pockets with charred eggplant and fresh herbs is the perfect opportunity to create memories with friends (and like-worthy social media posts!) while enjoying a delicious meal together.

Trend: Bring-A-Dish
The practicalities of hosting a dinner party have changed over time, with city dwellers rarely having the space for a dining table, least one large enough for a sizeable dinner party. As kitchens also get smaller, themed -bring a dish' get-togethers have evolved – bending the rules as to how and where dinner is prepared and served. The rise in street food-inspired dishes, ethnic flavours, simplicity and -fast causal' concepts all lend themselves to dinner parties where attendees bring their own dish, adhering to a pre-assigned theme.

Often served on mismatched plates around the kitchen table, a theme makes it easier for guests to mix and match dishes, from Mexican to Indian or African inspired. Sara's recipe of Vietnamese caramel lamb rump with fluffy quinoa rice and slaw pulls from Asian flavours, and can be easily recreated by a group of friends coming together.