Leg of Lamb

[Mandy]

Has anyone ever made a leg of lamb? I just ordered one from the butcher. I thought it would be something good to make for a small crowd. I have a recipe that says to make slits and push garlic and lemon and herbs in and around the slits, then to just roast it. Has anyone ever done this? What about preparing the meat? Will I have to trim or cut any of it off? What's it going to look like? Any input you could give would be great. Thanks a lot! Mandy http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

P.S. I ordered a six pounder, how many will this feed?

[This message has been edited by Mandy (edited 08-29-2000).]

[lorilei]

You can refer to this website for some good tips: www.sheepusa.org/lambcook.htm (http://www.sheepusa.org/lambcook.htm)

You shouldn't have to worry about much trimming with the leg. Remember to roast the leg fat side up (if there is any fat), as it will remain more tender.

Are you looking for a more interesting recipe for roasting lamb? Or just basics?

[Mandy]

Lorilei-
I'm looking for something that is a crowd pleaser. I will be cooking for my "beef and Chicken" in-laws. They are open minded, but this will be exotic for them. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[sneezles]

Mandy
I have a recipe for Chinois Butterflied Leg of Lamb from the Fusion Food Cookbook. The recipes in this book have an Asian flare to them. This lamb recipe requires
"butterflying" but the insturctions are pretty simple. Let me know if you're interested and I can post it.

[Mandy]

Sneezles-

If it's not too much trouble, would you mind posting it? http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif Thank You!

[lorilei]

Originally posted by Mandy:
I'm looking for something that is a crowd pleaser. I will be cooking for my "beef and Chicken" in-laws. They are open minded, but this will be exotic for them. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

A very good recipe follows which would have broad crowd appeal. It utilises the slit technique you referred to (which makes everything lovely and infused with garlic). The recipe overall is quite simple, but very very good. As you can see from the recipe, your leg should easily feed 6-8!

5-6 lbs. leg of lamb, with bone in
5 cloves garlic, peeled and cut into halves
2 sprigs rosemary, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1/4 cup olive oil
zest and juice of 2 lemons
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 cup Dijon-style mustard
1 cup red wine
1 large onion, thickly sliced
1 lemon sliced

Garnish:
whole rosemary sprigs
whole mint leaves
sliced lemon slices

Cut 8-10 slits into leg of lamb about 1/2" deep. Place slivered garlic into slits.

In a small bowl, combine the rosemary, mint, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, pepper, salt
and mustard in a bowl. Brush the top of the lamb with the mixture. Place in preheated
450 oven for 15 min, reduce heat to 350 degrees and roast for 10 min. per pound for
rare. Remove roast from oven after 45 min, add the wine, onion and lemon slices around roast. Continue to roast until desired doneness. Allow roast to rest 10 min. before slicing. Garnish with rosemary, mint and lemon slices.

Serves 6-8.

[Mandy]

lorilei-
Thank you, thank you, thank you! This look sooooo yummy. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif I'll give it a try and let you know next week how it turned out. Thanks again!!!

[Gail]

Unless I've gone completely senile (which is always a possibility), I believe I posted a recipe for leg of lamb Greek style under Susann's "and the country of the month is..." thread.

The "hack and slash" method of marinating and seasoning your meat is actually very effective and is used a lot in Cuban cooking. Wash the meat a little and dry it with paper towels. Trimming is usually not necessary. Hack the meat with the tip of your butcher knife (humming the shower music from Psycho for effect) then slather your meat liberally with pressed garlic and whatever your herbs. The longer it marinates, the better it tastes. And the aroma in the kitchen... people will come from miles around.

Enjoy! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/biggrin.gif

[sneezles]

Mandy,
Here is the recipe I mentioned.

1 Leg of lamb, boned and butterflied
1 1/4 c Hoisin sauce
3/4 cup red wine
1/2 cup light grade olive oil
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
3 tbs heavy soy sauce
1 tbs Asian chile suace
12 cloves garlic, finely minced
2/3 cup fresh rosemary ends

Advanced preparation

Trim and discard as much fat as possible from the lamb. In a large bowl, combine all of the remaining ingredients. Add the lamb and marinate for 1 hour a room temp.

Cooking:

If using a gas barbecue or indoor grill, preheat to medium (350F). If using charcoal or wood, prepare the fire. When coals or wood are ash-covered or the gas b-b-q or grill is preheated, brush the grill with cooking oil ( or spray with PAM) and lay the lamb on the grill. Turn the lamb over every 7 minutes, for a total cooking time of approximately 28 minutes, brushing the lamb with the marinate throughout the cooking process. For medium-rare, the internal temp should be 140F. Alternatively, preheat the over to 425F, place the lamb on an elevated rack over ashllow baking pan, and cook 30-40 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest for 5 minutes before cutting.

[Mandy]

sneezles, thank you very much. This one looks soooo good too. Now I've got to decide which to make. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/wink.gif