How to Cook a Lamb Roast
The most important thing to remember about cooking a lamb roast is to not over-cook it. Lamb has such wonderful flavor on its own, and is so naturally tender, that it is bound to turn out well, as long as it is still a little pink inside. There is some debate over which method yields the best results – slow cooking at low heat the entire time, or searing first on high heat and then slow cooking. James Beard in his American Cookery prefers the slow-cook-low-heat method (he rubs the roast with salt and pepper and cooks it at 325°F the whole time.) We generally get great results with the searing method, starting at high heat and then dropping the temp which is the method described in the following recipe.
Another point where there are wildly varying opinions is the internal temperature that constitutes “medium rare”. I’ve seen references that range from 120° to 145°F. For this roast, I pulled it out at 130°F. As it rested the internal temperature continued to rise a few points as the meat continued to cook. We like lamb on the rare side of medium rare, and this roast was perfectly done to our taste. Clearly an accurate meat thermometer is essential. Our ancient mercury meat thermometer has proven over and over again to be much more accurate than the instant read thermometers we have.
| ROAST LEG OF LAMB WITH HERBS RECIPE | |
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1 leg of lamb (about 6 lbs.) not sirloin half
Several lg. cloves of garlic 1/2 tsp. thyme leaves, crushed 1 tsp. rosemary leaves, crushed 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. fresh ground black pepper 2 tbsp. flour 1/4 c. tarragon vinegar 1/4 tsp. oregano 1/4 c. water 1 lg. onion, quartered 1 carrot, sliced 1 stalk celery, sliced 1 c. dry red wine Cut garlic into slivers and insert randomly into lamb, using point of sharp knife. Mix together thyme, oregano, rosemary, salt, pepper, and flour. Rub mixture well into lamb. Pour over lamb leg mixture of tarragon vinegar and water. Roast lamb in preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.Lower oven to 300 degrees and remove lamb and scatter vegetables on bottom of roasting pan and return lamb to pan on top of vegetables. Insert meat thermometer into fleshy part of lamb without touching bone. Pour wine all over; return to oven. Continue roasting for about 1 1/2 hours, basting a few times. Meat is medium rare at 145 degrees, 155-160 degrees for medium, and 165 to 170 degrees for well done.Remove lamb leg and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. Pour off fat from pan. Add 1/2 cup boiling water to pan; allow to boil up, scraping pan well. Pour liquids and vegetables into blender and blend until smooth.
GRAVY FOR ROAST LAMB WITH HERBS:
2 tbsp. butter
1 1/2 tsp. flour 1/2 to 1 c. reserved liquids from roasting pan 1 can beef consomme, undiluted Dash of freshly ground pepper 2-4 tbsp. dry red wine On board, mix flour and butter into paste.In saucepan, heat reserved liquids and consomme. Add butter/flour mixture, bit by bit, beating with wire whisk until sauce comes to boil and is slightly thickened.Stir in pepper and wine; return just to boiling. Serve with roast lamb.
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Sun, Sep 19, 2010
Appetizers, Lamb, Meats