Slow Roasted Shoulder of Lamb

This is the perfect Autumn dish for a family gathering. I love this way of cooking lamb, it’s so easy and requires very little preparation. The slow cooking allows it to develop a deep, rich melt-in-the-mouth flavour - you don’t even need a knife to carve it - just use two forks.

You will need two shoulders for more than 8-10 guests. This recipe serves 4

Ingredients

Lamb

• 1 shoulder of lamb on the bone, about 1.7 - 2kg
• 1 whole garlic bulb, broken into cloves
• bunch fresh rosemary
• bunch thyme
• Olive oil
• Salt and Pepper
• 500ml chicken stock
• 2 large onions, roughly chopped
• Chermoula paste, store bought

Mint Salsa

• small bunch mint, leaves picked
• small bunch parsley, leaves picked
• 1 clove garlic, roughly chopped
• 1 tb Dijon mustard
• 150ml olive oil
• 50ml Verjuice

Method

1. Preheat oven to 150C
2. Trim the shoulder of excess fat, and rub well on both sides with olive oil and season liberally with salt and pepper.
3. Place the onions, garlic, thyme and rosemary in a roasting dish. Make cleaning-up easier and use a disposable dish.
4. Place the lamb, skin side down, on top of the onion and herb mix. You have in effect created a flavour-packed ‘trivet’.
5. Pour over the chicken stock. Cover the baking dish, first with a piece of wet baking paper and then tightly with a double layer of foil and seal well.
6. Roast the lamb slowly for 3 hours. Remove the foil, turn the lamb over and and spread with Chermoula paste. Baste with the pan juices. Roast for 1 extra hour. When the meat is done, remove from the oven and and allow to rest for 10 minutes loosely covered in foil before serving.
7. Pour the pan juices, through a sieve, into a jug and let the fat settle on top, then skim this off. Reheat in the microwave at serving time. Transfer the meat to a warmed serving dish. I used a Cauliflower Puree under the lamb. Top with a little salsa and serve the rest in a bowl. I like to shred the meat with two forks - it should literally fall off the bone.

Mint Salsa

8. Combine the mint, parsley, garlic and mustard in a small food processor and blitz until well chopped. Scrape down the bowl and add the verjuice and then the olive oil, and blitz briefly again.

Notes

Bring the lamb to room temperature, about 1 - 1.5 hours before cooking, otherwise it will effect the cooking time.