There is something wonderfully comforting about lamb, potatoes and vegetables cooked together in one pot.
This recipe takes that familiar slow-cooked feeling and brings it into the modern kitchen using the Ninja pressure cooker. Lamb chump chops are placed in the bottom of the pot, layered with hearty winter vegetables, rosemary and good-quality chicken stock, then pressure cooked until tender.
The clever little trick here is the potato. Some of the potatoes are cut small so they naturally break down during cooking, helping to thicken the sauce without needing flour, cornflour or a separate gravy. The larger vegetables hold their shape, giving you that rustic, generous, country-style finish.
The peas are added at the end so they stay bright and sweet, and the crispy fried leek garnish gives the dish a little chef-style lift without making it complicated.
This is comfort food, but with a smart shortcut.
Serves: 4
Cooking Method: Ninja pressure cooker
Cooking Time: 20 minutes under pressure, plus sauté time to finish
Skill Level: Easy to moderate
Best For: Winter comfort food, family dinner, pressure cooker confidence, one-pot cooking
Season the lamb chump chops with Olsson’s Smoked Redgum Salt and Spice Lab Mélange of Peppercorns.
Place the lamb into the bottom of the Ninja pressure cooker pot.
Add the diced onion, small-cut potatoes, whole chat potatoes, carrots, parsnip and thick-cut leek rounds to the pot.
Do not add the peas at this stage.
Pour in the Bone Roasters Chicken Stock.
Add the rosemary sprigs.
Secure the lid and set the Ninja to Pressure Cook mode.
Cook for 20 minutes.
Once finished, release the pressure according to your Ninja’s instructions.
Carefully remove the lamb chops from the pot.
Place them on a plate, cover loosely, and keep warm while you finish the sauce.
Add the peas to the pot.
Change the Ninja to Sauté mode and bring the sauce to the boil.
Allow it to reduce and thicken slightly. The small-cut potatoes should begin to break down and create a rustic mashed-potato-style thickening through the sauce.
Taste and adjust the seasoning if required.
The sauce should be thick and generous, with the larger vegetables still holding their shape.
Finely slice the leek.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the leek until crisp.
Drain well on paper towel.
Place the lamb chump chops onto a serving plate.
Generously spoon the thick vegetable sauce over the lamb.
Top with crispy fried leek and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
Serve immediately.
The small-cut potatoes are not there just as a vegetable. They are doing a job. As they cook under pressure, they soften and begin to break down, naturally thickening the sauce and giving the dish a rustic, hearty finish.
Do not add the peas at the beginning. If they go in with the lamb and vegetables, they will overcook, lose their colour and turn into mash. Adding them at the end keeps them sweet, green and fresh.
Use the smoked redgum salt carefully. It brings a beautiful smoky savoury note to the lamb, but it is still salt, so season with control and adjust at the end.
The crispy fried leek is optional, but it gives the dish a lovely chef-style finish. It adds texture, height and a little sweetness against the rich lamb and vegetables.
This recipe can also be cooked in a slow cooker or in the oven using a casserole dish.
For a slow cooker, layer the lamb, vegetables, rosemary and stock into the slow cooker and cook on low until the lamb is tender. Add the peas near the end and allow the sauce to thicken slightly before serving.
For an oven method, place everything except the peas into a covered casserole dish and cook gently at around 160°C until the lamb is tender. Add the peas near the end, then return to the oven briefly before serving.
The timing will be longer, but the flavour will still be beautiful.
This dish is a great example of using ingredients to do more than one job.
The small pieces of potato help thicken the sauce naturally. Instead of adding a separate thickener, the potato breaks down and blends into the stock, creating a rustic sauce that feels rich and comforting.
This is a simple but valuable cooking skill: understanding how ingredients behave under heat and using that to build texture and flavour.
This dish should look generous and hearty rather than delicate.
Place the lamb onto the plate first, then spoon the thick vegetable sauce over the top so the lamb is partly covered but still visible.
Finish with crispy leek and rosemary.
Serve with crusty bread if you want to mop up the sauce, although the potatoes and vegetables already make this a complete meal.
For a deeper lamb flavour, you could use lamb stock instead of chicken stock, but the Bone Roasters Chicken Stock keeps the dish lighter and lets the lamb remain the hero.
You could also add a small spoon of Dijon mustard to the sauce at the end for a gentle savoury lift.
For extra greens, stir through chopped parsley just before serving.
This is the sort of dish that reminds us why simple cooking still works.
Good lamb, good stock, a few winter vegetables and a pressure cooker are all you need to create something hearty, honest and satisfying.
The Ninja simply helps us get there quicker — but the flavour still comes from understanding the ingredients and letting them do their job.