Greek Butterflied Lamb Leg Recipes

GREEK SLOW ROASTED LEG OF LAMB

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 240°C/465°F (220°C fan). (Note 2)
• Use a small knife to make around 25 incisions all over the lamb, with most on the top.
• Cut around 6 cloves into slivers and stuff them into the incisions.
• Sprinkle the lamb generously all over with salt, pepper, paprika and garlic powder. Drizzle with olive oil and rub all over the lamb.
• Place the lamb in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes or until it has a nice brown crust.
• Remove from the oven. Turn the oven down to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
• Turn the lamb upside down. Pour / place all the remaining ingredients in the pan around the lamb (including remaining garlic cloves). Fill the roasting pan with hot water so it comes up about 1/4 - 1/3 of the way up the height of the lamb.
• Cover with lid or with baking/parchment paper then 2 layers of foil. Bake for 3.5 hours. (Note 3) Top up water if it dries out (e.g. Might happen if your lid is loose)
• Remove the roast from the oven and remove the lid/foil. Turn the lamb over so it is the right side up.
• Cover again and roast for a further 2 1/2 hours, or until you can pull meat apart with forks.
• Remove cover and roast for a further 20 - 30 minutes (to brown). (Note 3)
• Remove from the oven and transfer lamb to serving platter. Cover loosely with foil and rest for 30 - 40 minutes.
• Strain liquid into a clear jug. The fat will rise to the top. Scoop/pour most of it off - I get 3/4 - 1 cup. There should be 2 - 3 cups of Sauce left. Adjust salt, pepper and lemon to taste.
• Serve lamb with the Sauce on the side and Truly Crunchy Roast Potatoes (heat oil while lamb is in the oven, then cook potatoes when the lamb is resting).

BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB WITH LAVENDER, HONEY & CLAQUERET

Steps:

• To make the claqueret, mix all the ingredients together. The flavours need time to meld, so ideally you should do this a couple of hours ahead and keep it at room temperature until ready to serve. You can also make the claqueret further ahead, cover and chill in the fridge, but remember to take it out and bring it to room temperature before serving.
• Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Lay the lamb out flat, flesh-side up, and use a small knife to make incisions all over both the flesh and fat sides (they can be deeper on the flesh side). Crush the garlic with some sea salt using a pestle and mortar, then add the lavender leaves and flowers, olive oil, lemon, balsamic vinegar and honey to make a rough paste.
• Put the lamb in a roasting tin and push the paste into the incisions you made. Finish with the lamb fat-side up. Mix the glaze ingredients together and spoon this over the lamb. Season, then roast for 15 mins.
• Turn the heat down to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and roast for another 20 mins. The lamb will be pink. Cover loosely with foil and allow to rest for about 10 mins. Carve, then serve with the cooking juices and the claqueret.

BROILED AND SLOW-ROASTED BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB WITH CUMIN AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Mix oil, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and oregano; spread paste on both sides of the lamb and let stand for an hour until meat comes to room temperature.
• Adjust oven rack to upper or upper-middle position (depending on lamb's thickness) and preheat broiler on high for at least 10 minutes.
• Place lamb, cut side up, on a large wire rack set over a foil-lined roasting pan. Broil, moving pan so entire surface browns evenly, about 8 minutes. Turn lamb over; continue to broil until well browned on the other side, about 8 minutes longer. Turn off broiler, remove lamb from oven and let rest for 10 minutes.
• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Stick a meat thermometer into the thickest portion of the lamb; return it to the oven. Roast for a total of 50 minutes to 1 hour, until thermometer registers a rosy-pink 140 degrees. Check lamb several times after 30 minutes. If lamb gets done sooner, simply turn down oven to 170 degrees until ready to serve.
• As soon as lamb comes out of the oven, squeeze on lemon juice and sprinkle with fresh herbs. Carve, slicing across the grain when possible. Arrange on a platter, drizzle with accumulated juices, and serve.

BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB WITH LEMON SALSA VERDE

Steps:

• Pat lamb dry with paper towels and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Season all over with salt and pepper.
• Set aside 1 teaspoon of the garlic. In a bowl, combine remaining garlic with thyme, oregano or marjoram, cumin, chile, lemon zest and 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Drizzle in about 1 tablespoon oil, just enough to create a sandy paste. Rub mixture all over lamb. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate for at least 1 hour or, even better, overnight in the refrigerator.
• Prepare the salsa verde: In a small bowl, combine a pinch of salt, the remaining teaspoon garlic, remaining 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice, 3 tablespoons preserved lemon, parsley, cilantro, mint and scallion and stir well. Drizzle in remaining oil. Season with more preserved lemon, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Let the mixture sit for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow the flavors to meld and mellow.
• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Roast lamb without turning for 22 to 35 minutes, until a thermometer inserted into the thickest part reads 120 degrees for rare and 130 for medium. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving with the salsa verde.

HERBED AND BUTTERFLIED LEG OF LAMB

Steps:

• With a mortar and pestle, lightly crush peppercorns and coriander seeds. Transfer to a small bowl, and add olive oil, salt and garlic. Finely grate lemon peel, and add to mixture. Cut lemon into quarters, and squeeze juice into mixture, then add leftover lemon as well.
• Place lamb skin side down in a shallow dish, and press whole rosemary sprigs into scored meat. Pour marinade over meat, pressing lemon pieces into meat. Cover dish with plastic wrap; refrigerate overnight.
• When ready to cook, remove lamb from refrigerator, and allow to sit at room temperature while oven heats to 425 degrees. Place lamb skin side up in a roasting pan, keeping lemon pieces and rosemary pressed into underside.
• Roast 35 to 40 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of lamb registers 145 degrees (for medium-well lamb), or adjust cooking time as desired. When cooked to taste, remove lamb from oven, and allow to rest in pan for 10 to 15 minutes before carving.

BARBECUED GREEK LAMB WITH TZATZIKI

Steps:

• Mash the garlic to a paste with a pestle and mortar. Mix with the olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, thyme and bay, and season with a little salt and plenty of pepper. Place the lamb in a large porcelain dish. Pour the marinade over the lamb and massage into the meat. Leave the lamb for at least 1 hr at room temperature, or longer in the fridge, but no longer than overnight or the meat will become too soft.
• To cook the lamb, fire up the barbecue, or heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. To cook on the barbecue, wait for the coals to turn ashen, then lay the lamb on the grill and cook for 15 mins on each side for meat that is pink, or 20 mins on each side for well done. To cook in the oven, place the lamb in a shallow roasting tin and roast for 30 mins for pink or 40 mins for well done, turning the lamb halfway through. Leave the meat to rest for 10 mins before carving.
• Meanwhile, make the tzatziki. Coarsely grate the cucumber, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and squeeze out all the liquid. Tip into a bowl with the yogurt, garlic and mint, and mix well. Carve the lamb into thick slices and serve with the tzatziki wrapped up in warm flatbreads.