Grill-roasted lamb shoulder barbacoa with consomme and Oaxacan pasilla salsa

Marinade: saute a little garlic in hot oil until aromatic, add ancho chili powder, Mexican oregano, cider vinegar, salt and sugar and cook until really dark; add water, simmer a few minutes and cool.

Put the soup ingredients in the bottom of a roasting pan: a couple of carrots and potatoes in small cubes, two halved garlic cloves, a chopped small onion, a drained can of garbanzo beans, a few epazote leaves, two quarts of water and a teaspoon of salt.

Nestle a V-shaped rack into the pan, lay avocado leaves on it, set the lamb shoulder on the leaves, spoon the cooled marinade over and around, cover with more avocado leaves and seal with foil.

Set the grill up for indirect cooking with the fire on one side and the pan on the other. Cook about four hours, adding charcoal every 30 minutes or so and topping up the liquid if it evaporates.

Salsa: husk the tomatillos and roast in a skillet on the grill until blotchy black and soft, with a few garlic cloves in their skins alongside.

Toast the dried pasilla chilies in a skillet over medium, pressing both sides; cover with hot tap water under a plate and soak about 20 minutes.

Blend the drained chilies with the peeled garlic and roasted tomatillos to a coarse puree; thin with a little water to a spoonable consistency and season with salt and a touch of sugar.

Uncover, remove the leaves and pull the meat from the bone onto a platter; sprinkle with coarse or flaked salt and add parsley. Serve with the consomme, hot corn tortillas and the salsa.