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A classic leg of lamb is a thing of beauty: succulent, perfectly browned, and tender. So what's the trick to making a perfect leg of lamb?
It's really all about the slow roasting. Cooking the leg of lamb over low heat for hours helps dissolve the tough fat which results in juicy meat that literally falls of the bone.
The alternative would be roasting the leg of lamb at high heat for a shorter period of time (about 30 minutes per kg) to obtain a medium-rare meat. However, less experienced cooks run the risk of overcooking the lamb and ending up with tough meat. Why not try a foolproof method of cooking lamb?
Here are our tips for slow roasting a superb leg of lamb for eight people:
How To Cook Leg of Lamb: Ingredients
1 leg of lamb (4 1/2 lbs, 2 kg) trimmed of excess fat
8 cloves of garlic, minced
zest of one lemon
the juice of one lemon
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp salt
2 tsp pepper
2 rosemary sprigs, leaves removed and chopped
2 white onions, quartered
1 1/2 cups of beef broth
How To Cook Leg of Lamb: Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 325F (160C).
2. Make incisions across the top of the leg of lamb. This will allow the seasonings to penetrate.
3. Combine all the seasonings in a small bowl: salt, pepper, rosemary, lemon zest, lemon juice, mustard, and garlic. Stir to combine.
4. Pour mixture over the leg of lamb, ensuring it falls over the crevices. Allow to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
5. Place onions in a roasting pan along with rosemary stems. Put the lamb over the onions and pour the beef broth into the pan. Cover with foil. Roast at 325F for 2 hours. Remove the foil and cook for 2 more hours, basting every 30 minutes.
6. Take the lamb from the oven and allow to rest for 15 minutes before serving. Strain the liquid from the roasting pan, skim the fat and serve with the lamb.
How To Cook Leg of Lamb: An Indian-style Recipe
If you are a spice lover at heart you might enjoy this Indian recipe for leg of lamb. It calls for marinating the leg of lamb with yogurt, garam masala, chilies, cayenne, ginger, almonds, garlic, and other spices for 24 hours. The final result is an aromatic and perfectly browned leg of lamb.
Click here for this lamb recipe.
How To Cook Leg of Lamb: Using Sous Vide
Another way to achieve melt-in-your-mouth leg of lamb is to cook it sous vide. You won't believe how simple it is yet how delicious the results are when you follow this recipe from Chefsteps. Their fried herb garnish is mind blowing.
