Made Steve's sirloin-tomatoes-capers-garlic-pepper casserole tonight. It was good, but I was a little stymied by the instructions to cut 300g of sirloin into 6 thin strips. Making thin strips, I had about 15. I'd be inclined to put on some more tomatoes, maybe…?

As for what to do with lamb, Irish stew is nice - traditionally it's a white stew, with just lamb and onions and potatoes and herbs and stock, and sometimes barley; however, I happily add carrots.

There are lots of Arab lamb dishes which are very nice - try Yotam Ottolenghi as a source. And the Caribbean curried goat is nowadays mostly made with lamb or mutton rather than goat.

Artificial stocks: I use those gloops of chicken gel by Knorr often, and if a bit more stocky strength is needed without more salt, one of the Kallo very low salt cubes.

Real stock: any roast chicken that passes through our house, the bones and skin go into the pressure cooker, and also the jelly part of the juice of chicken and vegetables and lemon and vermouth that's strained off from the roasting dish. I'll add a couple of stalks of celery, two big carrots, two bay leaves, a whole onion with the skin on, and the green of any leeks hanging around, plus a few herbs - a bit of thyme, mostly. That's pressure cooked for about an hour or an hour and a half, then the dog gets the carrots and celery and the rest of the solids go in the compost bin; the liquid is cooled, poured into plastic boxes and kept in the fridge.

Anyone got a nice recipe for fish stock?