Rub a shoulder of lamb with a little olive oil and season well. Smear a casserole dish with a little more olive oil
and add peeled shallots together with several peeled cloves of garlic and a couple of springs of thyme. Sit the lamb
in between and put into a 180°C oven for 20 minutes, until the lamb is starting to colour a little. Turn the oven down
to 120°C, cover with a lid (you could use a kitchen foil tent if you haven’t got a suitable lid) and cook for another 3 hours.
Remove from the oven and take out the shallots, which by now will be meltingly soft, and set aside. Pour over 100 ml
balsamic vinegar and 100 ml lamb stock and cook for another hour without the lid, basting from time to time. When ready,
return the shallots to the casserole and continue cooking for 10 – 15 minutes, until piping hot, and serve with
buttery mashed potatoes abd a green veg.