Category: The Farm Life

Spicy Lamb Coconut Curry Ramen

INGREDIENTS

2 tablespoons sambal oelek

2 shallots, peeled and halved

6 cloves garlic, peeled

1 (2 inch) piece ginger, peeled and sliced

1/4 cup cilantro stems, chopped

1 tablespoon ground coriander

1 tablespoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

2 (14 ounce) cans unsweetened coconut milk

2 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon fish sauce

1 tablespoon light brown sugar

Kosher salt

Spicy Lamb (recipe below)

2 (3 ounce) packages instant ramen noodles, flavor packets discarded*

2 eggs

1 bunch scallions, very thinly sliced

1 lime, sliced into wedges

Cilantro, for garnish

FOR THE SPICY LAMB

1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

1 pound American ground lamb

2-3 teaspoons sambal oelek, depending upon how spicy you’d like

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon ginger powder

Kosher salt

DIRECTIONS

Puree sambal oelek, shallots, garlic, ginger, cilantro stems, coriander, turmeric, curry powder and 3 tablespoons water in a food processor until a smooth-ish paste forms.

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the above paste and cook, stirring constantly, for 4-5 minutes. Whisk in coconut milk and broth and season generously with Kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook for 20 to 25 minutes. Add fish sauce and brown sugar, and cook for at least 5 more minutes. Pour soup through a fine mesh strainer and discard solids. Return soup to the pot and keep hot.

Meanwhile, cook eggs: bring water to boil in a medium saucepan. Lower heat to a rapid “hard simmer”. Carefully lower eggs into water and cook for exactly 6 1/2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove eggs from water and place in an ice bath (bowl filled with very icy water). Let eggs cool completely, then carefully peel and slice in half.

Meanwhile, cook spicy lamb: heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add lamb and season with Kosher salt, breaking into small bite-sized pieces as it cooks, until no pink remains, about 6 minutes. Stir in sambal oelek, garlic powder, and ginger powder and cook for 1 more minute. Remove from heat and set aside until soup is done.

Cook ramen noodles in boiling water until just cooked through (if you cook too long, they will turn to mush).

Divide broth between bowls. Add ramen noodles, spicy lamb, scallions, and garnish with cilantro. Serve with lime wedges. Devour immediately.

NOTES

*You can also feel free to use another type of noodle-like thicker stir fry rice noodles or even spaghetti!

**If you have extra soup and lamb leftover, refrigerate and reheat for a future meal!

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Roast Leg of American Lamb with Potatoes & Lemon

Leg of Lamb

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 bone-in leg of lamb, about 5 pounds
  • 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
  • 12 cloves of garlic, peeled and cut in half
  • 1 teaspoon + 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 pounds yukon gold potatoes, quartered
  • 2 organic lemons, cut into eighths
  • 3/4 pounds shallots, peeled and cut into quarters
  • 3 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons dried rosemary
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup dry white wine

DIRECTIONS

The night before cooking, use a paring knife to make 24 1-inch punctures around the leg of lamb. Rub it inside and out with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Place ½ clove of garlic inside each puncture. Cover and refrigerate the leg overnight.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1 tbsp salt, oregano, rosemary, and ½ tsp black pepper.

Toss together the potatoes, lemons, shallots, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, and ⅔ of the spice mixture in a large roasting pan.

Rub the leg of lamb with the remaining spice mixture, and place it on top of the veggies in the pan. Pour the vegetable stock, lemon juice, and white wine into the bottom of the pan.

Place in the oven and roast until the internal temperature of the lamb leg reaches 140 degrees F, about 90 minutes, using a metal ladle to spoon the pan juices over the vegetables every 30 minutes.

Remove and allow to rest for 10 minutes before carving + serving.

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Lamb and Chanterelle Mushroom Phyllo Pie

Lamb Phyllo Pie

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 pounds ground American Lamb
  • 1 tablespoon salted butter
  • 1 ½ cups chopped yellow onion 
  • ¼ cup cubed pancetta 
  • 2 tablespoons minced garlic 
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • ½ pound sliced fresh chanterelle mushrooms (or any mushrooms)
  • 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper 
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme 
  • 1 fresh bay leaf
  • ¼ cup port, or dry sherry
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 ½ cups broth of your choice
  • 10 phyllo pastry sheets

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350F.

 Heat a large pot over medium heat, and add the lamb. Cook, stirring, until evenly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Pour off some fat, if desired. Add the butter, the onion, tomato paste, pancetta, mushrooms, garlic, rosemary, and spices, and cook until the onions are soft, and the flavors have melded, 5 to 7 minutes. Deglaze the pot with the port, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Sprinkle in the cornstarch, and pour in the broth. Stir, and simmer until thickened. Remove and discard the bay leaf, and allow it to cool slightly. Note: USDA recommends ground lamb be cooked to an internal temp of 160 degrees. 

 Brush a 9 -inch pie dish with olive oil, and layer sheets of phyllo pastry in the dish, turning it as you go, and brushing each sheet with olive oil until the phyllo has covered the entire dish. (Olive oil spray is great for this!) Pour in the lamb filling, and bring the overlap up, scrunching it around the edges. Brush the phyllo with olive oil, and bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Serve warm with your favorite sides! 

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Harmony of Farm Life

In the bustling world of a family-run farm, the age-old adage “Many hands make light work” is not just a saying—it’s a way of life. This isn’t just about chores and checklists; it’s a symphony of shared responsibilities that creates a unique rhythm, harmonizing work with education, and duty with delight.

The farm is a living classroom, where every task is a lesson waiting to be learned. Here, children and adults alike find that weeding the garden or washing the dishes aren’t mundane tasks, but moments filled with song and conversation—a chance to grow more than just crops, but relationships as well. It’s where homeschooling transcends books, allowing grandchildren to inherit wisdom along with the land they till.

A smiling girl with shoulder-length hair, wearing a colorful jacket and rain boots, sits on a blue stool surrounded by playful lambs, holding a black and white lamb in her arms.

From arithmetic to zoology, the farm teaches it all. It’s a place where reading is learned from seed packets as well as storybooks, where science is understood through the life cycle of a plant, and where math is practiced in the measuring of feed. Every day is a problem-solving adventure, demanding creativity and resourcefulness, as the family strives to make the most of their resources.

The day begins and ends at the family table, a sacred space where planning and reflection bookend the day’s labors. It’s here that each voice is heard, sharing triumphs and trials, laughter and lessons. This ritual of reflection is more than just talk—it’s a cornerstone of resilience, a daily reinforcement of the family’s collective spirit.

A young boy wearing a gray long-sleeve shirt, blue shorts, and black rubber boots stands in a grassy field, holding a yellow water bottle. Mountains are visible in the background under a clear blue sky.

And then, there’s Sunday, a day of rest and reverence for the work done and the work yet to come. It’s a gentle pause in the cadence of farm life, a necessary respite that renews the spirit and readies the hands for the week ahead.

This is the story of a family where life is a tapestry woven from threads of hard work, learning, and laughter. It’s a testament to the fact that on a farm, hands do more than work—they teach, they bond, and they love. It’s a reminder that in the right hands, work isn’t just light—it’s luminous.

A young girl hugging a brown pony in a sunny outdoor setting with straw in the background.
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Choosing Livestock to Match your Land

highland cattle on green grass

Part 3-Choosing Livestock for the Farm  

In the final session of the three-part Building Strong Foundations series for beginning livestock farmers, NCAT Specialists draw on their own experience to offer tips for success in starting a livestock operation with worms, poultry, rabbits, hogs, sheep, and goats, or cattle. Learn about respecting the limits of your land and choosing a livestock species based on resource base, marketing, and goals. To give an idea of the options available, NCAT specialists provide virtual tours of their own farms.

Years of farming and visiting other farms, combined with recent education in soil health, have convinced me of this: We can best serve people, the land, and the livestock by learning to care for the soil FIRST. 

That’s why NCAT’s Livestock and Grazing Team began with this foundation when they gathered to teach a three-part series for beginning livestock producers.   

If you missed that series, no worries—you can watch recordings of each part at your convenience and share the links with others who are managing land or considering starting a livestock enterprise. Here’s what you will find in each session: 

Part 1-Soil Health: Your Grazing Foundation

NCAT specialists introduce the principles of soil health and explain how healthy land is the foundation of successful livestock production. Presenters explain the concepts of minimizing disturbance, maximizing biodiversity, keeping soil covered, maintaining living roots in the soil, and including animals. Find out how grazing affects the plant, soils, and livestock and learn the importance of grazing plants at the right time and allowing full plant recovery before re-grazing. By respecting the soil health and grazing principles, you can take better care of your land. See the additional resources for this session.

Part 2-Adaptive Grazing: Matching Land and Livestock

Learn about soil structure and its effect on water infiltration, then find out how to determine the carrying capacity of your land. Find out how adaptive management helps you “keep your eyes on the prize” through observing, implementing, and adapting. Having the right number of livestock for your farm will help you take better care of your land and make money with fewer costs. See the additional resources for this session.

Part 3-Choosing Livestock for the Farm  

NCAT specialists draw on their own experience to offer tips for success in starting a livestock operation with worms, poultry, rabbits, hogs, sheep, and goats, or cattle. Learn about respecting the limits of your land and choosing a livestock species based on resource base, marketing, and goals. To give an idea of the options available, NCAT specialists provide virtual tours of their own farms. Each session has a customized resource page for more information because an hour is just enough time to whet your appetite to learn more. See the additional resources for this session. See the additional resources for this session.

Our experienced team of livestock specialists periodically offers training sessions. We have several on tap during the next few months, including free webinars hosted by Food Animal Concerns Trust (foodanimalconcernstrust.org) and an advanced grazing training to be held in April 2022. Watch NCAT’s Events page so you don’t miss it! Let us know what topics you’d like us to teach in the coming year. Email me at lindac@ncat.org and I will pass the ideas on to the team. 

Thank you for the work you do in caring for soil, plants, and livestock! Please join us at the forum at the Soil for Water forum to network with other producers who care about stewarding the land well. 

Related ATTRA Resources:

Livestock and Pasture

Regenerative Grazing

Soil and Ecosystem Health

Other Resources:

Soil for Water

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