Greek-style shoulder of lamb - Oven or BBQ cook
It might be September, but summer's not over yet. Rather than spend hours in the kitchen cooking I'd rather enjoy the last of the (fingers crossed) good weather.
Food that's simple to prepare and requires little looking after is what I'm after.
My Greek-style roast lamb fits in perfectly and the lovely spices remind me of holidays in Greece. When it's cooking your kitchen will smell amazing.
Should the weather be good enough there could be time for a few more barbecues, although I have to point out I've never tried to cook a piece of lamb like this on a BBQ, but if you're all clued up, then I say go for it!
You can of course serve this lamb with whatever you fancy, but I suggest thinly sliced and into pitta bread, along with a Greek salad. It's a simple but filling meal to enjoy with friends or family.
Serving size is anything from 4 to say 10 people depending on how you serve it and what with; for example served in pitta bread this will go a long way.
Ingredients
1kg boneless shoulder of lamb
Spice mix:
Two tablespoons dried oregano
Two tablespoons sweet paprika
One teaspoon garlic powder
A pinch of sea salt
A pinch of black pepper
One sprig of fresh rosemary - leaves only and chopped finely
Thyme - freshly picked leaves only to make about two teaspoons
Three tablespoons olive oil
A lemon - sliced in half and keep the juice of the other half
80ml dry white wine
What to do:
Preheat your oven to 170C (fan oven) 325F or Gas Mark 3
In a small bowl mix together all the spice mix ingredients and the olive oil.
Remove the string and unroll the shoulder of lamb (if yours is rolled and tied with string as mine was).
Lay out the lamb and rub it all over with the spices, concentrating on the top and then the underside. You should have enough spice mix to cover a 1kg piece of lamb. Once unrolled the piece of lamb will be long and thin, so once you've rubbed the spice mix into it fold it in half.
Put the lamb in a dish and cover it with cling film, then put it into the fridge and leave for at least 30 minutes - longer is good so the meat can take on those lovely spices.
Now this bit is important; like any meat you should always remove it from the fridge at least 30 minutes before you are ready to cook so it can come to room temperature.
When you're ready, transfer the lamb to a suitably sized roasting tin. Add the lemon juice to a glass of wine, pour into the tin and add the lemon slices.
Drizzle with a little olive oil and cover loosely with foil. Put it on the middle shelf of a preheated oven for about 1 hour and 10 minutes.
Remove the foil and baste with the wine and lemon juice, then pop it back into the oven uncovered for a further 15 minutes or so until cooked to your liking.
Exact timing of course will depend on the thickness of your meat and your oven, as all ovens cook differently, and also how well you like your meat cooked.
The best way is to use a meat thermometer. For medium rare you want the internal temperature of lamb to be about 63C, for medium about 68C, or 77C for well done. Personally I'd have preferred mine a bit less cooked but Paul (my husband, aka. Mr Fussy) wouldn't have eaten it. The temperature of my piece of lamb was 70C.