I've tried the boneless leg of lamb only one time but I was disappointed in the way it turned out. Probably all my fault in the way I prepared it. But I has a question fer 'ya... what's the advantage to boneless? When I do a leg of lamb, I use the whole leg (with the little end parts cut off), slather it with garlic juice, pepper and kosher salt and pop it into the oven with a meat thermometer.
Roast Leg of Lamb is wonderful, the boneless is quicker to fix and gets that sizzle like a steak would. Crisper on the outside med. rare on the inside. For some reason, prepared in the broiler or grill, my husband says it doesn't have that gamey taste, (whatever that is) to me lamb is always sweet..Yumyum.
Prepare a bone-in leg of lamb by "drilling" holes with a shap knife and putting mint and garlic in each hole (about ten holes.)
Make a wet paste out of:
Minced garlic,
Romano cheese
Italian Bread crumbs
Minced mint
Fresh lemon juice ( at least 3 lemons)
Extra virgin olive oil
Make about 2 or 3 cups of this paste. Completely cover the lamb with the paste.
Preheat oven to 450F. Place lamb on rack in a heavy roasting pan and put in oven, immediately reducing the heat to 350F. Roast at approx 20 min per pound. (Check a good cookbook for temperatures according to the way you like lamb.)
For a real treat - cut white potatoes and sweet potatoes in quarters and spray olive oil on them. Place around the roast when there is approximately one hour left. Let the roast stand for 12 minutes before carving.
The meat has a delicious crust that keeps the juices in and the potatoes will be a bit crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
A lot of plain grocery stores don't carry lamb routinely because it doesn't sell well. They most often will carry it at Easter time if at all. Down here the Kroger's stores will have a very small lamb selection and usually no legs. Our higher end Schnucks will always have a large selection of lamb chops but not always a full leg. However, they will get you nearly anything you want on request.
I have four ladies who work for me. Three of them have never even tried lamb. Aren't interested in trying it out. The other lady says she doesn't like it from the one time she tried it.
I can't understand peoples' reluctance to try new foods.
Boneless or bone-in leg of lamb (I figure about 0.5 lb/person with a little extra for hearty eaters)
About 10 peeled cloves of garlic
FRESH oregano and thyme - probably about 4-6 oz/each
Olive Oil
Greek Seasoning (like Cavanders)
about 10 potatos peeled and cut into chunks
1 8-12oz can of tomato sauce
Rinse the meat and place it on a cutting board.
Let it get up to room tempreture - or darn close to it - I'm not kidding - this makes a difference...
Using a very sharp knife, make slits in the meat - like pockets - and place cloves of garlic in the slots.
Rub the outside of the leg with liberal amounts of olive oil
Sprinkle with Greek seasoning
Place the sprigs of FRESH oregano and thyme all over the meat.
Take the potatoes and lightly coat with olive oil.
Pour the tomato sauce over them and coat them some more.
Add some Greek seasoning
Place the meat and potatoes in a roasting pan. I place the meat on a rack.
Make a tin-foil tent over the leg of lamb.
Place in oven at about 325 degrees with a meat theometer in the leg, at the meatiest part.
The meat will cook and juices will help to roast the potatoes.
Remove the foil tent after about the first hour.
Drink liberal amounts of ouzo and greek wine (if you can stand the stuff) while waiting.
Remove from oven when theometer is just about to the 140 degree part.
*This is key: Let the meat sit for about 15-20 mins. before carving.
Cover it with a hot, damp kitchen towel while it is sitting. It will cook a little more once its out of the oven.
Carve and serve with the potatoes, Greek salad, rolls, fresh asparagras or peas (with lemon sauce), and lots of ouzo or greek wine (if you can stand the stuff.)
Greek Easter this year is on the same Sunday as western Easter - we will be coooking and serving leg of lamb for BOTH families, as we observe both holidays.
OPA!
Roast Leg of Lamb is wonderful, the boneless is quicker to fix and gets that sizzle like a steak would. Crisper on the outside med. rare on the inside. For some reason, prepared in the broiler or grill, my husband says it doesn't have that gamey taste, (whatever that is) to me lamb is always sweet..Yumyum.
Lamb won't have a gamey taste if it is spring lamb (which usually means that it comes from New Zealand) and if it was slaughtered before it was 3 months old, I believe.
If you've ever had mutton (sheep) - that's the definition of gamey - and stringy. I hate mutton - the texture is the one thing that really turns me off - no thanks!
Flat bread, some kinda white sauce, onions, and lamb.
Never have tried it any other way.
So where does one get a leg of lamb??
I've not seen it in the grocery stores up here.
Do you have to go to a specialty meat shop?
We have a couple of those here in town.
Is this something they would have "in stock"?
David,
My parents order 4 lambs every year from a local, organic farm. They're slaughtered, packaged and delivered to them, then they send care parcels to us kids. Maybe you can find a local supplier? I'm very much a lamb-snob and most of what is sold as lamb and ordered through stores is really mutton.
Now, that said...these recipes are really lovely, I think. I'll just slip in two more, which are favorites of my kids, and the only way I can get my son to eat anything resembling meat...
And the second, Lamb Puffs, is my own recipe, so I'll just tell you how I do it, but, be flexible with it, because it's not a hard and fast mix.
Lamb Puffs
lamb, either ground or minced, about a pound.
1 medium carrot
2 shallots
3 cloves garlic (more if you love it)
1 T minced chives, fresh
1 T minced rosemary, fresh
2 tsp. Worcesteshire
6 oz. mushrooms (I prefer dangakes) processed fine/
stock (I make my own lamb stock, but chicken will do, or even veggie)
butter
puff pastry
demi-glace sauce.
In a little butter, or butter and olive oil mixed, sautee shallots and garlic until sauce and fragrance is released. If your lamb is already cooked, add it now and heat through. If your lamb is raw, add it and brown. Process the carrot very fine, and add. add a little stock to moisten the mixture, then add the mushrooms. Cook over medium heat until the mixture has body and tends to lump up onto a spoon. Add the herbs, stir well, remove from heat.
Now, I make my own puff pastry, but, I have used those pastry shells that you can buy frozen in the store and they're just fine. So, make your puff pastry cups and bake in a 425 degree oven until risen and golden. Leave them slightly underdone...maybe 5 minutes before you'd normally take them out.
Fill them with lamb mixture until they are heaped nicely, then put a little pastry cap on the top. Pop them in the oven for 6-7 minutes until the pastry is just how you like it.
Top with a demi-glace sauce, drizzling it over the puff, don't make it swim.
I serve these with a green salad, sauteed spinach and spaghetti squash.
QT- I look forward to trying your receipes, they sound wonderful. Mutton is bad, hard to get used to.
David- I purchase the boneless leg of lamb at a place close to us called TRADER JOES, you can locate any close to you by checking out their website.www.traderjoes.com Fun place to shop. If your cooking for one or two I would use the boneless, ask the local grocer too.
I have four ladies who work for me. Three of them have never even tried lamb. Aren't interested in trying it out. The other lady says she doesn't like it from the one time she tried it.
I can't understand peoples' reluctance to try new foods.
I can't understand people's reluctance to eat lamb - but all the more for those who love it (yum). Specially the NZ variety.
Here is an EXCELLENT lamb recipe....my family and all of our friends we've cooked this for have LOVED it!!!! It's from the Barefoot Contessa (she's the best!)
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RainbowsGirl
Gee Ca dreaming,
That sounds very good...I'm going to try it!
Thanks!
Love You RG
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Sudo
Ca_Dreaming,
I've tried the boneless leg of lamb only one time but I was disappointed in the way it turned out. Probably all my fault in the way I prepared it. But I has a question fer 'ya... what's the advantage to boneless? When I do a leg of lamb, I use the whole leg (with the little end parts cut off), slather it with garlic juice, pepper and kosher salt and pop it into the oven with a meat thermometer.
Always turns out just right. Ummmm... lamb.
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Ca_dreaming
Roast Leg of Lamb is wonderful, the boneless is quicker to fix and gets that sizzle like a steak would. Crisper on the outside med. rare on the inside. For some reason, prepared in the broiler or grill, my husband says it doesn't have that gamey taste, (whatever that is) to me lamb is always sweet..Yumyum.
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dmiller
I love the lamb in a Gyros sandwich.
Flat bread, some kinda white sauce, onions, and lamb.
Never have tried it any other way.
So where does one get a leg of lamb??
I've not seen it in the grocery stores up here.
Do you have to go to a specialty meat shop?
We have a couple of those here in town.
Is this something they would have "in stock"?
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doojable
Grandma's Leg of Lamb
Prepare a bone-in leg of lamb by "drilling" holes with a shap knife and putting mint and garlic in each hole (about ten holes.)
Make a wet paste out of:
Minced garlic,
Romano cheese
Italian Bread crumbs
Minced mint
Fresh lemon juice ( at least 3 lemons)
Extra virgin olive oil
Make about 2 or 3 cups of this paste. Completely cover the lamb with the paste.
Preheat oven to 450F. Place lamb on rack in a heavy roasting pan and put in oven, immediately reducing the heat to 350F. Roast at approx 20 min per pound. (Check a good cookbook for temperatures according to the way you like lamb.)
For a real treat - cut white potatoes and sweet potatoes in quarters and spray olive oil on them. Place around the roast when there is approximately one hour left. Let the roast stand for 12 minutes before carving.
The meat has a delicious crust that keeps the juices in and the potatoes will be a bit crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.
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Sudo
David,
Re:"So where does one get a leg of lamb??
I've not seen it in the grocery stores up here."
A lot of plain grocery stores don't carry lamb routinely because it doesn't sell well. They most often will carry it at Easter time if at all. Down here the Kroger's stores will have a very small lamb selection and usually no legs. Our higher end Schnucks will always have a large selection of lamb chops but not always a full leg. However, they will get you nearly anything you want on request.
I have four ladies who work for me. Three of them have never even tried lamb. Aren't interested in trying it out. The other lady says she doesn't like it from the one time she tried it.
I can't understand peoples' reluctance to try new foods.
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ChasUFarley
Leg of Lamb - Greek Recipe...
Boneless or bone-in leg of lamb (I figure about 0.5 lb/person with a little extra for hearty eaters)
About 10 peeled cloves of garlic
FRESH oregano and thyme - probably about 4-6 oz/each
Olive Oil
Greek Seasoning (like Cavanders)
about 10 potatos peeled and cut into chunks
1 8-12oz can of tomato sauce
Rinse the meat and place it on a cutting board.
Let it get up to room tempreture - or darn close to it - I'm not kidding - this makes a difference...
Using a very sharp knife, make slits in the meat - like pockets - and place cloves of garlic in the slots.
Rub the outside of the leg with liberal amounts of olive oil
Sprinkle with Greek seasoning
Place the sprigs of FRESH oregano and thyme all over the meat.
Take the potatoes and lightly coat with olive oil.
Pour the tomato sauce over them and coat them some more.
Add some Greek seasoning
Place the meat and potatoes in a roasting pan. I place the meat on a rack.
Make a tin-foil tent over the leg of lamb.
Place in oven at about 325 degrees with a meat theometer in the leg, at the meatiest part.
The meat will cook and juices will help to roast the potatoes.
Remove the foil tent after about the first hour.
Drink liberal amounts of ouzo and greek wine (if you can stand the stuff) while waiting.
Remove from oven when theometer is just about to the 140 degree part.
*This is key: Let the meat sit for about 15-20 mins. before carving.
Cover it with a hot, damp kitchen towel while it is sitting. It will cook a little more once its out of the oven.
Carve and serve with the potatoes, Greek salad, rolls, fresh asparagras or peas (with lemon sauce), and lots of ouzo or greek wine (if you can stand the stuff.)
Greek Easter this year is on the same Sunday as western Easter - we will be coooking and serving leg of lamb for BOTH families, as we observe both holidays.
OPA!
Lamb won't have a gamey taste if it is spring lamb (which usually means that it comes from New Zealand) and if it was slaughtered before it was 3 months old, I believe.
If you've ever had mutton (sheep) - that's the definition of gamey - and stringy. I hate mutton - the texture is the one thing that really turns me off - no thanks!
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QuietThinker
David,
My parents order 4 lambs every year from a local, organic farm. They're slaughtered, packaged and delivered to them, then they send care parcels to us kids. Maybe you can find a local supplier? I'm very much a lamb-snob and most of what is sold as lamb and ordered through stores is really mutton.
Now, that said...these recipes are really lovely, I think. I'll just slip in two more, which are favorites of my kids, and the only way I can get my son to eat anything resembling meat...
Shepherd's Pie
And the second, Lamb Puffs, is my own recipe, so I'll just tell you how I do it, but, be flexible with it, because it's not a hard and fast mix.
Lamb Puffs
lamb, either ground or minced, about a pound.
1 medium carrot
2 shallots
3 cloves garlic (more if you love it)
1 T minced chives, fresh
1 T minced rosemary, fresh
2 tsp. Worcesteshire
6 oz. mushrooms (I prefer dangakes) processed fine/
stock (I make my own lamb stock, but chicken will do, or even veggie)
butter
puff pastry
demi-glace sauce.
In a little butter, or butter and olive oil mixed, sautee shallots and garlic until sauce and fragrance is released. If your lamb is already cooked, add it now and heat through. If your lamb is raw, add it and brown. Process the carrot very fine, and add. add a little stock to moisten the mixture, then add the mushrooms. Cook over medium heat until the mixture has body and tends to lump up onto a spoon. Add the herbs, stir well, remove from heat.
Now, I make my own puff pastry, but, I have used those pastry shells that you can buy frozen in the store and they're just fine. So, make your puff pastry cups and bake in a 425 degree oven until risen and golden. Leave them slightly underdone...maybe 5 minutes before you'd normally take them out.
Fill them with lamb mixture until they are heaped nicely, then put a little pastry cap on the top. Pop them in the oven for 6-7 minutes until the pastry is just how you like it.
Top with a demi-glace sauce, drizzling it over the puff, don't make it swim.
I serve these with a green salad, sauteed spinach and spaghetti squash.
Yours Baaa-ingly,
~QT
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Ca_dreaming
QT- I look forward to trying your receipes, they sound wonderful. Mutton is bad, hard to get used to.
David- I purchase the boneless leg of lamb at a place close to us called TRADER JOES, you can locate any close to you by checking out their website.www.traderjoes.com Fun place to shop. If your cooking for one or two I would use the boneless, ask the local grocer too.
Enjoy everyone.
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doojable
I posted a delicious lamb recipe here:
Braised Lamb Shanks
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Twinky
I can't understand people's reluctance to eat lamb - but all the more for those who love it (yum). Specially the NZ variety.
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Cindy!
Here is an EXCELLENT lamb recipe....my family and all of our friends we've cooked this for have LOVED it!!!! It's from the Barefoot Contessa (she's the best!)
the barefoot contessa's grilled leg of lamb
2 pounds (2 pints) plain yogurt (regular or
low-fat)
1/2 cup good olive oil, plus more for
brushing grill
1 lemon, zested
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3
lemons)
3/4 cup fresh whole rosemary leaves (2 large
bunches)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 (5-pound) butterflied leg of lamb (9
pounds bone-in)
Combine the yogurt, olive oil, lemon zest
and juice, rosemary, salt, and pepper in a
large non-reactive bowl. Add the lamb,
making sure it is covered with marinade.
Marinate in the refrigerator, covered,
overnight or for up to 3 days.
Bring the lamb to room temperature. Prepare
a charcoal grill with hot coals. Scrape the
marinade off the lamb, wipe the meat with
paper towels, and season it generously with
salt and pepper. Brush the grill with oil to
keep the lamb from sticking, and grill on
both sides until the internal temperature is
120 to 125 degrees for rare. This will take
40 minutes to 1 hour, depending on how hot
the grill is.
Remove the lamb to a cutting board, cover
with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 20
minutes. Then slice and serve.
Yield: 8 to 12 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 12 hours
Cook Time: 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy
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