Wet Roasted Lamb Leg with Lemon and Herbs
Roast leg of lamb was once considered the quintessential Australian meal. It’s an old favourite in my family, though usually I buy the leg deboned and butterflied by my wonderful butcher. I then roast it flat, very quickly in my charcoal fired kettle barbeque.
We’re almost at the end of the salt bush hogget that I bought in Burra on the homeward journey of our recent big trip, but I still had one leg to cook. I recently came across a recipe for a leg of lamb pot roasted in the oven. In a trial run, the flavour was disappointing, but the method was successful enough to warrant a rework of the ingredients.
I’ve stuck to the original concept of flavours from the Eastern Mediterranean. Almost completely covering the lamb with stock at the beginning means that in the initial stages of the slow roast, the meat braises, but as the juices evaporate the flavour of the sauce intensifies and the outside of the lamb develops a luscious crust.
I made a simple lemon and herb pilau, and served the unctious meat on top with the mint infused roasting juices reduced to a sauce. A simple crisp green salad was all that was needed to balance the rich moist meat.
1 leg of lamb, shank removed
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup wine red or white
1 tablespoon Greek oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
a large sprig of fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoones ground sumac
1 lemon, sliced
6 cloves garlic, peeled and squashed
2 cups lamb stock
1 tablespoon tomato concentrate
2 large carrots, roughly chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh mint
Season the leg of lamb generously with sea salt and pepper.
Heat a large, deep, cast iron casserole dish add the oil the brown the leg of lamb on all sides. Remove the leg, then deglaze the pan with the wine.
Add the herbs and spices, the lemon and garlic, the tomato concentrate.
Bring to the liquid to the boil, then return the lamb to the pot.
Add enough hot stock to almost cover the joint. Return the stock to the boil then transfer to the oven and slow roast for 3 hours. By this time The meat should be falling off the bone.
Remove the leg of lamb from the casserole dish, strain the juices into a small saucepan and skim off any fat.
Reduce the liquid over a high heat to saucing consistency, adjust the seasoning with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and honey or brown sugar. Stir in the chopped mint. Serve the sauce alongside the lamb.
Serves 6 generously.
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14 comments on “Wet Roasted Lamb Leg with Lemon and Herbs”
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Please Pass the Recipe by Sandra Gay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Please Pass the Recipe 
Oh, just gorgeous Sandra! I just might try this come Easter.
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Lamb cooked every which way is an everyday dish here, but this is a fabulous method for a whole leg and would make a great party piece!
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Your lamb dish looks amazing. Outstanding job!
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Thanks it’s a great way to cook a lamb leg!
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Just the thing leading up to Australia Day! Never had salt bush lamb, but have heard all about it, definitely on the list of food to try this year. This looks wonderful.
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Salt bush lamb is super tasty, though in fact it was a hogget leg (a bit older, a bit stronger flavoured) that I used. This was a fabulous method. Going to do something similar with pork next!
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I’ve never cooked a leg of lamb that starts out with a braise…I’m like you, I usually cook a butterflied boneless leg. I will have to give this a try.
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It was a great method, required little attention and the flavour was fabulous.
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This is definitely a new way for me to cook leg of lamb and I can’t wait to try it.
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Karen, I’d love feedback if you do try cooking this recipe!
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Lamb is the best, and this recipe looks incredible. I love the ingredients! So, is wet roast the same ad braise?
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It’s like pot roast/braise hybrid, more liquid though and slower cooking best suited to a whole joint. It was great, moist, juicy and tender
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This looks fabulous. I’m very new to lamb, never having tried it while I was growing up. My mom always insisted it tasted like human, therefore she would never try it. When I was growing up, I truly believed her. Haha!! Yes, I know it begs the question… “How do you know that, mom?” 🙂 She still refuses to try it.
I can officially say I love lamb.
Just lovely. Look at how gorgeous it is braising.. pure comfort. I can only imagine how the house smelled while it was roasting.
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I never tire of the aroma of roasting lamb coming from the kitchen. It’s very, very popular in Australia, ethically raised, grass fed, free range, sweet, tender and juicy, glad you are a convert! This is a delicious way of cooking a whole leg, great served hot, or pulled from the bone for sandwiches.
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