Lamb with Warm Lentils, Mint & Whipped Feta

Ingredients

• 700 g lamb leg steaks
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 x 250g pouches cooked puy lentils
• 1 shallot, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 3 spring onions, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 15 g mint, roughly chopped
• 160 g feta
• black pepper to taste
• 120 g Greek yoghurt
• 100 g baby spinach
• Fine salt

Method

1. Season the lamb steaks generously with salt, black pepper and half the lemon zest, then rub with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Leave at room temperature for 20 minutes while you build the lentils; cold lamb straight from the fridge seizes up and won't brown properly.
2. Heat another tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat and soften the shallot for 3 minutes until translucent and just starting to catch at the edges. Add the sliced garlic and cook for 30 seconds, just until fragrant and pale gold.
3. Tip in both lots of lentils with the spring onions, the red wine vinegar and a splash of water to loosen. Warm through for 2 minutes, stirring, until the lentils glisten and smell savoury rather than tinned.
4. Fold in the chopped spinach and turn it through for a minute until it collapses and goes glossy. Pull the pan off the heat, stir in half the mint and a squeeze of lemon juice. Taste; adjust salt and pepper now until the lentils are lively, not heavy. Cover to keep warm.
5. Mash or blend the feta with the Greek yoghurt, the remaining lemon zest and plenty of black pepper until smooth and swoopable. Taste; feta varies wildly in saltiness, so adjust pepper and add a pinch more salt only if it needs it.
6. Get a griddle pan or heavy frying pan properly hot; you want it almost smoking. Lay the lamb steaks down in a single layer with space between them; if your pan is small, work in two batches. Crowd the pan and the steaks steam in their own juices instead of taking on a proper crust.
7. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes per side depending on thickness, pressing gently; you're after a deep brown crust outside and rosy pink within. Lift onto a board and rest for 5 minutes. The juices need to settle back into the meat or they'll run out the moment you slice.
8. Spread thick swipes of whipped feta across a warm platter, spoon the warm lentils over and around, then slice the rested lamb against the grain and fan it over the top. Scatter the extra mint leaves and finish with a final squeeze of lemon over the lot; the acid cuts through the rich lamb and salty feta and ties every forkful together.