Leg of Lamb Recipe
Ingredients
Lamb
- 2 legs of American lamb
- 16 cloves of garlic
- 16 cardamom pods
- ⅓ cup whole peppercorns
Dry Spice blend
- 3 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 2 Tablespoons of Allspice powder
- 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoons of onion powder
- 1 tablespoons of garlic powder
- 3 tablespoons of Pepper flakes a blend of paprika and turkish spice pepper flakes
- ¼ cup salt divided -Use mediterranean sea salt
- 3 tablespoons of cracked black pepper divided
Wet Blend
- ½ cup yogurt
- ¼ cup ketchup if you can’t find turkish sweet pepper paste
- ½ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup pomegranate molasses
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
To Roast
- 2 onions cut in half
- 2 heads of garlic cut in half
- 5 bay leaves
- 6 cinnamon sticks
- 6 cups stock beef, chicken, veggie or lamb
Instructions
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Start by preparing the lamb.Make sure it fits your roasting pan. You will be marinding the lamb in the pan itself. Your butcher can cut off the bone in order for it to fit comfortably.
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Line your roasting pan with foil and then parchment paper.
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Use a sharp knife to cut 3-4 slits into the leg of lamb deep enough to fit a garlic clove and cardamom.
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Press down one garlic clove and one cardamom pod along with a few whole peppercorns into each slit.
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Press them well.
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Next, season the lamb lightly with salt and pepper.
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Mix the dry spice blend in a bowl and sprinkle the dry spices evenly over the lamb making sure to cover the sides and every possible part of the leg.
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In a deeper bowl or cup, mix the wet blend together.
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Pour the wet mix over the leg of lamb and use your hands to massage that well into the meat.
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Cover the lamb with a sheet of parchment paper and then foil.
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Marinade the lamb for 2 hours and up to 2 days.
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Before roasting, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
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Arrange the onions, garlic, whole spice and Bay leaves around the lamb.
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Pour the hot stock.
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Give the lamb a final seasoning with the remaining salt and pepper.
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Cover and roast for 1 hour before dropping the temperature to 400 degreesF.
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Roast the lamb for about 4-5 hours depending on the size/weight of the meat.
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On average each leg of lamb is about 6-9 pounds and each pound needs about 45 minutes of roasting.*
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Rotate the pan halfway and make sure to add more stock if needed.
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When ready, allow the meat to rest and cool before serving it with the pan juices.
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See serving suggestions and notes below.
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ENJOY
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
*USDA recommends lamb reach an internal temperature of 145F and rest for at least 3 minutes.
Leg of Lamb Tips
- Start with American Lamb for a fresh, quality and delicious tasting meal! I can’t stress this enough-American Lamb is superior and I don’t want you to miss out on that :)
- Beforehand make sure you know the size of your roasting pan and ask your butcher to cut off excess bone so that the lamb fits comfortably.
- When inserting the garlic and spices into the meat, make sure you press them down really well so that they don’t fall or slip out.
- My grandma always salted separately and salted twice. The dry spice doesn’t include salt and that way the salt is well distributed. Right before roasting, salting the lamb enforces the flavor.
- It’s a good thing to get messy here and use your hands to massage the wet mixture really well into the leg of lamb.
- Marinating the meat can vary from 2 hours to 2 days. The more the better without a doubt.
- Add more or less of the flavoring before roasting including onions, garlic, whole spices and bay leaves.
- The amount of stock is essential to ensure a juicy meat, so don’t put less.
- When covering the lamb, make sure there’s a layer of parchment paper first and then foil.
- Flip the roasting pan half way and check on the stock amount because every oven is different.
- The juices at the bottom of the roasting pan make the best sauce to serve with the lamb and keep it juicy.
Leg of Lamb Q&A
How long should a leg of lamb take to cook?
The leg of lamb should cook for about 40 mins per pound. It’s ideal to start roasting at 420 degrees for the first hour and then drop the temperature to 400 for the remaining time.
Should leg of lamb be cooked fast or slow?
Ideally, slow roasting is the best way to cook leg of lamb. Basically the lamb cooks itself, so while your meat is in the oven getting tender, juicy and tasty, you have all the time to prepare other items.
Should you sear leg of lamb before roasting?
While you can totally do that, my grandma has never done so. And frankly when you look at the gorgeous crust on the outside of the leg of lamb recipe we made here–I don’t see any value in that extra messy step! Follow this recipe and you absolutely don’t need to sear.
Do I need to cover lamb while roasting?
This depends on the recipe. My grandma always covered the leg of lamb recipe and guess what? We have the juiciest, most tender lamb with a superb crust without searing or broiling! So it’s a win win!
How much lamb do I need for 8 adults?
A nice decent size leg of lamb is enough to feed 8 people. On average, a leg of lamb is between 7-9 pounds. If you’re a lamb lover like us, we usually make two legs of lamb to feed 10 people. But that’s also because we LOVE having leftovers ha! :)