This easy dinner idea is perfect when you find a leg of lamb on sale. The rich meat entree seems fancy but is ultra simple to prepare and tastes mild compared to mutton. The roasted root vegetables soak in the lamb juices as they cook, making them caramelized to perfection. Enjoy this slow-roasted dinner anytime you have the extra time in the kitchen.
I grew up not eating a lot of lamb; likely, my mother wasn’t keen on it. Over the years, when I have had lamb, it’s been heavy on the gamey side, making it rather unappealing. However, in the past few years, I have decided that life’s too short to ignore the popular meat. Enter this easy-roasted leg of lamb.
Looking at the flyers and apps like Flipp (Canada), I shop around for meat prices and the best cuts to work with. That’s when I spied this leg of lamb on sale. I knew I had to make something easy as I work full time from home, so standing over the stove is only sometimes doable. I also wanted to make it have the tasty caramelized root vegetables as it’s fall and heavier meals are back in the dinner lineup.
Enter this simple glazed leg of lamb at no more cost than a small beef roast. It’s so succulent and full of flavor! Everyone wished I had made more veggies, though. Oh well, live and learn, as I always say.
If you like to cook lamb, find out how to make a basic lamb chop in minutes.
How to make this slow roast leg of lamb.
First, be warned: when you buy a fresh leg of lamb wrapped in plastic, it will have excess blood in the package. So be sure to open it over your sink. Have the roasting pan ready with a rack to keep the lamb from sitting directly in its juices.
We are adding a cup or two of stock, depending on the size of your roasting pan. This will create an excellent steamy environment for the lamb to cook in.
Pat the leg of the lamb dry with a clean cloth or paper towel. Note: The paper towel will stick, so don’t press overly heavy when patting it dry. If your leg of lamb has an excess layer of fat, score it so that it will crisp and render as it cooks.
Lay the leg of lamb onto the rack in your pan to baste with the Dijon garlic coating. It’s a simple mixture of three tablespoons of garlic and five cloves. Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to thin the Dijon. Mix it up well and slather that on both sides of the leg.
It is so simple: this leg of lamb is then covered and put in a low oven preheated to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Have the rack lower in the range than the center. Roast this without lifting a finger for three hours!
Close the end of the three-hour roast and prepare your root veggies. This is as simple as washing, peeling, and chopping them up. I used a mix of potato, carrot, and parsnips, adding sweetness to the lamb dish.
Remove the roaster from the oven and uncover it. You will see the lamb is looking tender but still needs more roasting time. Add your veggies around the base of the lamb and cover it back up before returning to the oven. This is going to roast for an additional hour.
After the hour is up, remove and test veggies for doneness. They should be nice and caramelized since they are cooked in the juices.
Remove from the roaster and put in a serving dish or on a large platter. The Dijon glazed ham is ready to fall off the bone and succulent. Your family will love it!
Stay tuned for what to do with any leftover leg of lamb!
Ingredients:
Leg of Lamb: This recipe uses a whole small leg of lamb. The meat is milder than mutton and goes well with fall vegetables.
Beef or Chicken Stock: This can be purchased from the grocer in cans or boxes. I use the boxed variety and always have some in the pantry. You never know when you are going to need it.
Potatoes: This recipe calls for white potatoes. If you see a potato sale at any time, you can successfully store them in a cool, dark place. However, be sure to remove them from the original paper packaging as it often holds too much moisture, making potatoes rot.
Carrots: Falltime means great carrots! This recipe uses whole peeled carrots chopped up, and the sweetness from the carrots adds to the lamb dish. Caramelized in the meat juices, the carrots are out of the world!
Parsnips: This white root vegetable looks like a carrot’s cousin. In fact, they are in the same family of “Apiaceae.” With a slightly more sweet flavor, they are often found in the grocery at a higher cost than the humble carrot. This is in large part due to the cost of seeds and harvesting. If you love them, you love them, and if you don’t, well, it’s an acquired flavor taste that not everyone appreciates.
Dijon Mustard: Mustard comes in so many fantastic varieties. I used Dijon because it has a smooth, creamy texture that lends itself well to glazes. The vinegar and acidic nature cuts through the heavy fat content often found in lamb.
Garlic: This pungent bulb is often used in culinary for its herbaceousness. The strong-smelling cloves impart a mild, spiced flavor to the lamb.
Substitutions for the slow roasted lamb dish:
Lamb: This leg of lamb can be substituted with a beef roast, and it will still turn out exceptionally. Consider reducing the cooked phase of roasting beef to two hours, depending on the size of the roast.
Potatoes: Instead of white potatoes, you can use red or another waxy type of potato. You don’t want to use a starchy potato because it won’t hold up when cooked in the juices.
Carrots: Instead of using full-size carrots, you can grab a bag of baby peeled and washed carrots and toss them in. Be sure to rinse them thoroughly again, though, before adding them to the roast.
Parsnips: As mentioned above, only some people like the nuttiness or sweetness of parsnips. Their cost can also be of further cause of apprehension in using. Replace with whole peeled Brussels sprouts for added flavor as well as color.
Expert Tips & Storage:
This succulent lamb recipe is cooked well done. If you prefer your lamb to be rarer, reduce the first three-hour cooking phase to two hours.
Serve the lamb with aside of mint sauce or mint jelly. The mint cuts through the fatty nature of the lamb and adds a spinrg fresh flavor to the dish.
The lamb falls off the bone when it finishes. Hang onto the bone to make a great broth, which can be frozen for up to three months.
If you have leftover lamb, store it in a covered container in the fridge for up to three days. Be sure to let it cool thoroughly before putting a cover on it.
Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb With Root Vegetables
Equipment
- 1 Roasting Pan
- 1 Rack For Roasting Pan
- 1 Tablespoon
- 1 Vegetable peeler
- 1 Paring Knife
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Basting Brush
- 1 Serving Dish
Ingredients
- 1 New Zealand Spring Lamb® bone-in short cut leg
- 2 Cups Beef stock
- 8 White Potatoes Peeled and quartered
- 3 Whole Carrots Peeled and sliced
- 3 Whole Parsnips Peeled and sliced
- 5 Cloves of Fresh Garlic Diced
- 3 Tbsp Dijon Mustard
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
Instructions
- Lower the oven rack to below center and preheat oven to 325℉
- Add the stock to the roasting pan and place rack in pan.
- Remove plastic wrap from lamb (over sink) and pat lamb dry.
- Lay lamb leg on the rack in pan.
- Score any large areas of fat on the leg of lamb.
- In a small bowl add the diced garlic, Dijon and oil, mix well.
- Using your basting brush slather the lamb with the Dijon coating.
- Cover the lamb in the roasting pan and put in the preheated oven.
- Slow roast for three hours for well-done / two hours for rare.
- Wash, peel, and cut root vegetables.
- Remove lamb from oven and add the root vegetables around the base of the meat.
- Cover and return to oven for an additional hour.
- Remove from oven and test vegetables for done. They should have soaked up moisture from the meat and started to caramelize.
- Remove the roast from the oven and put on serving tray to serve.
- Serve while hot.