Lamb & Spinach Soup

This lamb soup recipe is one of my favorite ways to use leftover meat from braised or slow roasted lamb cuts. It doesn't have the best looks but flavorwise it is a must-try, must-make, must-know about for any lamb lover. Utterly delicious and very healthy.

My grandmother used to make it in the spring, after the traditional spit-fire whole roast lamb my grandfather always did for our family. There would be all sorts of tender meat leftover that she would pull apart and use in the soup. She added different greens that are abundant in spring - sometimes spinach, other times dandelion greens, Swiss chard, arugula and even sorrel to it and called it spring lamb soup.

Why This Recipe Works

Ingredients

Olive oil. The soup begins with just a bit of olive oil for sauteing the aromatics.

Onion and garlic. To form the base of the broth with their savory aromatic qualities.

Seasonings. Paprika and red pepper flakes are my top choice to season the base for the soup. Dried oregano is suitable too. I add kosher salt and black pepper at the end.

Chicken broth or chicken base and water. A light broth is better here - even if you have lamb broth, try to use chicken instead and reserve the lamb broth for cooking lentils or a lamb stew. I typically use roasted chicken base paste and dilute it in a ratio of: 1 tbps base to 4 cups of water.

Greens. Spinach is by far the easiest choice. If you like Swiss chard be sure to remove the thickest parts of the ribs and cut it into smaller pieces. Dandelion greens are excellent as well as sorrel - if using sorrel the lemon juice may not be needed. A combination of any of these greens works too.

Leftover lamb meat. See the section below for details on options.

Eggs and cream or milk. To thicken the soup in a delicious, silky way. I prefer heavy cream but half and half or whole milk work too.

Lemon juice and yogurt. The lemon juice brightens the flavors, while the yogurt is for garnish at serving and can be skipped.

Which Lamb Cut is Best for Soup?

Any tender lamb meat without fat works well here. It does not need to be from a tender part of the animal rather it needs to have been cooked to tenderness so it can be easily pulled (shredded) by hand before it is added to the soup. I have used meat from braised lamb leg or shoulder, slow roasted lamb leg or shoulder, crock pot lamb leg, braised lamb shanks and necks.

TIP: The one thing that is of importance is that the leftover meat is not greasy. This soup is not supposed to be heavy. Be sure to remove any bits of fat still attached to the leftover lamb meat that did not melt during slow cooking. Then shred the meat smallish, sort of like pulled chicken.

How to Make Lamb Soup

The workflow is very simple. I have included step-by-step pictures in the Recipe Card below. Here I just oultine the process.

Base. The onion is softened in olive oil, then the garlic, paprika and red pepper flakes join it.

Addition of spinach, add the broth and the lamb meat. The rough chopped spinach is barely wilted after which broth is added followed by the shredded lamb meat.

Simmer and thicken. The soup is allowed to simmer and then it is thickened with a mixture of beaten eggs and cream (or milk) through tempering. Lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste are added to season the soup.

TEMPERING. To temper the beaten eggs and cream mixture before adding it to the lamb soup I stir ladelfuls of hot broth into it until its temperature rises. Then I pour the tempered mixture slowly back into the hot soup. In that way it thickens it and the eggs are not cooked solid (do not form strands).

Top Tips

• Be sure you turn off the heat from underneath the soup pot before you begin tempering the eggs and dairy mixture. Doing this will ensure that the soup is hot enough to cook the eggs gently as it thickens but not so hot that they form solid strands.

• Add the tempered mixture to the pot slowly, stiring gently the entire time.

• Taste the lamb soup before you season with salt and pepper as an abundance of caution. The broth and cooked lamb meat do contain salt.

How to Serve

This lamb soup is best served in a shallow bowl with a generous topping of natural plain yogurt and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. The tangy flavor of the plain yogurt perfectly counters the richness of the lamb and brightens the overall flavor of the soup. It is so delicious, truly.

You can substitute with Greek yogurt or sour cream, both of which are thicker and contain more fat while they lack the degree of tanginess of plain yogurt. But they will work.

Variation - Adding a Starch

Suitable starches to add to this lamb soup are short grain rice or small noodles such as orzo, pastina or fideos. They all cook really fast and can be added once the soup starts to simmer and before the eggs and cream mixture has been worked in.

Because all of these starches will naturally thicken the soup, to maintain its consistency increase the amount of broth in the beginning. Do so by a little more than would be needed to cook through the type and amount of starch you are using. For example, if adding ¼ cup of pastina, add about ¾ cup to 1 cup of extra broth. Your personal judgement is the best way to determine how much extra liquid is required.

Storing and Reheating

Store leftover lamb soup in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or in a small pot over medium heat.