How To Turn Leftover Roast Lamb Into A Classic Irish Pie | don't waste

"Dingle pie is a great way to save lamb," says inspirational Irish chef JP McMahon. "Pies have a very rich history in the British Isles," he says, and adds that every time you bake a pie, you tap into that tradition. Dingle pies use leftover roast lamb (and its fat), which both makes them quicker to prepare and turns the leftovers into a very filling traditional hand-shaped pie.

Dingle pies

McMahon is a strong proponent of Irish cuisine, both traditional and contemporary, and his The Irish Cook Book (Phaidon) is full of thrifty, homemade Irish recipes. His Dingle pies caught my eye as a great way to use up leftover Easter roast lamb, so I reached out to JP to find out more about the zero-waste practices at his restaurant Aniar in Galway. He told me that they always try to incorporate the whole vegetable into their cooking and use pickling, preserving and fermenting to save food that would otherwise go to waste. Dingle pie, he says, is a great way to turn one meal into another, using up all the leftover meat, fat and juices.

These pies are also proof that leftovers can often save a lot of time, as well as money, as the topping takes a total of 15 minutes to make. (That said, you can start with uncooked lamb: use the same weight of diced shoulder and simmer it in the juices for 90 minutes, or until the meat starts to fall apart.)

Also save the lamb fat from the roasting pan for sweating the onions and making the dough. Also, reserve any leftover gravy or gravy and use it to cook the pie filling.

There's no need to use cling film to make dough. Instead, simply shape it, leave it in the bowl, cover with a plate, and refrigerate. I wanted to make JP's signature round pies, but didn't have the right cookie cutters, so I used a plate and jar instead that were about the right size to cut. Just make sure one set of discs is about 3cm smaller than the other set.

Makes 4 pies

170g fat - lamb jus and/or butter1 small onion, peeled and diced180g leftover roasted or raw root vegetables (carrot, potato, parsnip), trimmed, peeled and diced diced180g leftover roast lamb, shredded 300ml gravy, gravy, stock or water 190g flour (I used wholemeal flour), plus 1 tbsp for garnish and extra for dusting1 teaspoon of fine sea salt 1 large egg, lightly beaten Milk for browning

Melt 30 g of fat in a sauté pan, sweat the onion, stirring often for five minutes. Add the shredded lamb, diced vegetables, pan juices, gravy, broth or water and a tablespoon of flour, and stir to combine. Simmer for 15 minutes, until the liquid reduces to a very thick sauce, then remove from the heat and let cool.

In a large bowl, rub the rest of the lamb drain and/or butter in 180 g flour mixed with fine sea salt, until the fat is evenly distributed in small pieces. Mix the egg and two tablespoons of cold water until they form a paste, then form a ball, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

On a baking sheet dusted with flour, roll out the dough to 4 mm thickness, then cut out 4 discs of 10 cm and 4 discs of 13 cm, rolling up the scraps if necessary. Top each small disk with a large mound of lamb filling, leaving a 1cm rim all around, then brush the exposed pastry with milk. Place the large discs on top of the filling, then seal the edges with a fork. Brush with more milk, then bake at 200C (180C fan)/390F/Gas 6 for 35 minutes, until golden brown. Serve hot.