Roast Lamb

[Davey S2]

Told the o/h I would do a roast for us this Sunday and she has asked for lamb.

I've done pork, beef and chicken but never lamb. I never chose lamb when eating out and only seem to have it when my mum makes a roast lamb dinner )

Any tips?

Its only for the 2 of us so whats the best cut to get and how is best to cook it?

It will be served with the usual roasties and veg and of course a gallon of fresh mint sauce.


Thanks

[Melman Giraffe]

Half a leg. Stab the leg with a sharp knife to make lots of small holes. push garlic and rosemary into said holes and place in a roasting pan. cook long and slow 160c for aleast 3 hrs. yum

[Mr Gearchange]

Melman Giraffe said:

Half a leg. Stab the leg with a sharp knife to make lots of small holes. push garlic and rosemary into said holes and place in a roasting pan. cook long and slow 160c for aleast 3 hrs. yum

Don't forget to add anchovies into the the holes. Lovely salty nuggets of goodness.

[Heskey]

Just don't stick your knob in it.

[nevgroom]

Mr Gearchange said:

Melman Giraffe said:

Half a leg. Stab the leg with a sharp knife to make lots of small holes. push garlic and rosemary into said holes and place in a roasting pan. cook long and slow 160c for aleast 3 hrs. yum

Don't forget to add anchovies into the the holes. Lovely salty nuggets of goodness.

And roast in a pan on a bed of sliced onions/potatoes with some water (may require topping up during the cook) to get a good gravy base

[otolith]

Mr Gearchange said:

Don't forget to add anchovies into the the holes. Lovely salty nuggets of goodness.

^^ Definitely do this. Even if you don't think you like anchovies.

[PaulHogan]

Davey S2 said:

Its only for the 2 of us

I'd get Shoulder. Simply lay some rosemary on it and roast slowly gas4 for 30mins/500g

[bstw]

Check iplayer for last weekends saturday morning kitchen, they did an awesome slow roast leg

[21TonyK]

I'd go with shoulder, very long slow cook. I sometimes leave a shoulder in all day, 8+ hours at about 140. For two a half shoulder is enough, lots of fresh herbs and root veg on the base. Couple of glasses of wine, foil over and forget it. Then blast at 220 to crisp it up a bit when you are ready to eat.

[ChrisnChris]

PaulHogan said:

I'd get Shoulder.

This ^^^^

21TonyK said:

I'd go with shoulder, very long slow cook. I sometimes leave a shoulder in all day, 8+ hours at about 140. For two a half shoulder is enough, lots of fresh herbs and root veg on the base. Couple of glasses of wine, foil over and forget it. Then blast at 220 to crisp it up a bit when you are ready to eat.

This ^^^^

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[Pete Franklin]

I agree with tony shoulder is cheap and very tasty and tender when cooked properly- chuck it in a low oven 120-140 in the morning in a pan on top of chopped carrot celery onion and garlic + herbs of your choice. add a glass of white wine to the pan and cover with foil- forget about it until you are 1 hr from eating (i agree with tony 8hrs+ will give good results at this temp)- blast for 30mins at 220 rest for 30 mins and serve with a spoon.

[escargot]

Another advocate of the long and slow shoulder method here.

[Zaxxon]

Cool, i'll be doing this on the webber this weekend. Will definatly do the anchovies thing

[shirt]

if you can do beef, lamb is a cakewalk. easiest thing to roast and the best testing.

[JFReturns]

I love shoulder of lamb, and my favorite way of cooking is slow roasting with merguez spices as seen on River Cottage. You score the lamb, and rub with a spice mix that consists of:

1. 1 tsp cumin seeds
2. 1 tsp coriander seeds
3. 1 tsp fennel seeds
4. ½ cinnamon stick, broken up
5. 1 tsp black peppercorns
6. A pinch of cayenne pepper or chilli powder
7. 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
8. 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
9. Leaves from 2 large rosemary sprigs, finely chopped
10. 2 tsp sea salt
11. 2 tsp olive oil

If you can dry roast the spices first it helps with the flavour, and the aroma is amazing. Rub half the spice mix on, blast in a hot oven for half and hour, rub in the remaining spice mix and cover with foil (with a glass of water poured in) and slow roast for six hours. I promise you, it is delicious and the leftovers will keep you going with awesome sandwiches

Full River Cottage recipe here.

[Shaw Tarse]

Zaxxon said:

Cool, i'll be doing this on the webber this weekend. Will definatly do the anchovies thing

I like anchovies in lamb, have used them in braised shanks. They should "melt" & add ununctousness ( blame iPad for spelling)

[Bill]

Agreed on the long slow shoulder effort, or get a whole chump, sear it on the hob and chuck it in the oven for 20-30 minutes at 180.

Melman Giraffe said:

Half a leg. Stab the leg with a sharp knife to make lots of small holes. push garlic and rosemary into said holes and place in a roasting pan. cook long and slow 160c for aleast 3 hrs. yum

Leg is great pink IMO, so I do it for 20 mins at 220 then 15 minutes per lb at 180

[Davey S2]

Cheers all. Will give it a go and put some pics up next week.

[Mobile Chicane]

JFReturns said:

I love shoulder of lamb, and my favorite way of cooking is slow roasting with merguez spices as seen on River Cottage. You score the lamb, and rub with a spice mix that consists of:

1. 1 tsp cumin seeds
2. 1 tsp coriander seeds
3. 1 tsp fennel seeds
4. ½ cinnamon stick, broken up
5. 1 tsp black peppercorns
6. A pinch of cayenne pepper or chilli powder
7. 2 tsp sweet smoked paprika
8. 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
9. Leaves from 2 large rosemary sprigs, finely chopped
10. 2 tsp sea salt
11. 2 tsp olive oil

If you can dry roast the spices first it helps with the flavour, and the aroma is amazing. Rub half the spice mix on, blast in a hot oven for half and hour, rub in the remaining spice mix and cover with foil (with a glass of water poured in) and slow roast for six hours. I promise you, it is delicious and the leftovers will keep you going with awesome sandwiches

Full River Cottage recipe here.

Wow. One to try in the slow-cooker I think.

[Simpo Two]

And as for the mint sauce, don't buy it in a pot. Get fresh mint, chop to about tea-leaf size, add vinegar and sugar (or honey) to taste, and leave for a few hours for the sugar to pull the juice out.