Author Notes
Leg of lamb is wonderfully versatile -- it can be cubed and used for stew, braised, or simply roasted. Because it’s a well-exercised muscle, it also gets a good deal of blood flow; this means that it is one of the most flavorful cuts on the animal. Like beef, lamb doesn’t need to be cooked all the way through, and is best at a rosy medium-rare (135 to 140° F, when finished). Here, we’re rubbing it with lemons, garlic, and a spice mixture of coriander, cayenne, cumin, smoked paprika, and sumac -- then roasting it to perfection. —Cara Nicoletti
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Ingredients
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1/2 cup
olive oil
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1/3 cup
lemon juice
-
7
garlic cloves
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1 teaspoon
coriander
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2 teaspoons
sumac
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1/2 teaspoon
cayenne
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2 tablespoons
smoked paprika
-
1 tablespoon
salt
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2 teaspoons
black pepper
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2 teaspoons
cumin
-
one
4 ½ to 5-pound bone in leg of lamb
Directions
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Pulse everything save for the lamb in a food processor until a paste forms. Rub it all over the leg of lamb, wrap it tightly in plastic, and allow it to marinate overnight.
-
The next day, remove the lamb from the fridge and wipe excess marinade off.
Place it in a deep roasting pan and allow it to sit out of the fridge for about 45
minutes to bring it up to room temperature.
-
While it rests, heat your oven to 450° F.
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Roast the lamb for 15 minutes, then drop the temperature down to 325° F and roast until a meat thermometer reads 135 to 140°, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
-
Transfer lamb to a cutting board and tent it with foil. Allow it to rest for 20 minutes
before carving.
Cara Nicoletti is a butcher and writer living in Brooklyn, New York. Cara started working in restaurants when she moved to New York in 2004, and was a baker and pastry chef for several years before following in her grandfather and great-grandfathers' footsteps and becoming a butcher. She is the writer behind the literary recipe blog, Yummy-Books.com, and author of Voracious, which will be published by Little, Brown in 2015. She is currently a whole-animal butcher and sausage-making teacher at The Meat Hook in Williamsburg.
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