Lamb en croûte with redcurrant sauce

Method

• step 1

  Season the lamb well. Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry three fillets over a high heat for 5 minutes until seared on the outside. Remove from the pan and repeat with the other 3 fillets. Set aside until cold.

• step 2

  Unravel the whole pack of pastry on a floured surface and cut into four rectangles. Cut the half pack to make two rectangles. Roll out each piece to make the rectangles 2.5cm larger all round.

• step 3

  Position one rectangle with a short side facing you, brush with egg yolk and sprinkle with a sixth of the chopped sage. Put a lamb fillet on the pastry close to the end facing you, then fold the long sides in to cover the ends of the meat; brush these with more egg yolk.

• step 4

  Freeze the lamb parcels on a tray until solid for 4 hours, then pack in a freezer container. Seal, label and freeze for up to a month.

• step 5

  To make the sauce, melt the redcurrant jelly in a pan over a gentle heat, add the port and rosemary and boil uncovered for 10-12 minutes until syrupy. Cool for 5 minutes, strain into a freezer container, then leave until completely cold. Seal, label and freeze for up to a month.

• step 6

  On the day defrost the lamb seam-side down on a wire rack for 3 hours at room temperature. Defrost the sauce at room temperature.

• step 7

  Preheat the oven to fan 200C/ conventional 220C/gas 7. Put the parcels seam-side down on a nonstick baking sheet, brush with egg yolk, then snip four incisions in the top of each. Bake for 25 minutes until golden. Remove from the oven and rest them for 5-10 minutes. Reheat the sauce in a pan.

• step 8

  Slice each parcel and serve with the sauce and watercress salad.