A Sunday night favourite can be made extra special with this incredible stuffed leg of lamb recipe from the mind behind all our FPE recipes, including the popular Guinness irish stew. With the option to cook over the fire or straight in the oven, this is bound to be a crowd pleaser.
Product Specialist (DC Norris, BCH Ltd and AMTek Microwaves) and former chef, Geoff Nugent (known affectionately as Chef Geoff), knows how to create the perfect family dinner. Even Geoff’s son, Boston, recently showed us it’s a family trait with his amazing cinnamon scroll recipe.
So, without further ado, here’s Geoff’s easy stuffed leg of lamb recipe.
Overview:
Stuffed leg of lamb ingredients:
- 1 large butterflied leg of lamb (boned but leaving in the shank bone. Approximately 2.5 kg)
- 150g stale sourdough bread
- 50ml white wine
- Olive oil
- 1 lemon
- 4 garlic cloves
- ½ tsp of dried chilli flakes
- 30g of chopped mint
- 4 anchovy fillets
- 1 tbsp capers in brine
| Prep Time | 30 mins |
| Cook Time | 1 hr 45 |
| Serves | 8 to 10 |
Preparing the stuffed leg of lamb
- Tear the bread into rough chunks and place in a food processor, pour over white wine, add 1 tbsp olive oil, finely grate in the lemon zest and squeeze in the juice. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper, then leave to soak for 10 minutes.
- Peel the garlic and roughly chop with the chilli. Pick the mint leaves and add to the processor with the anchovies and capers. Pulse into crumbs, then taste and salt and pepper, if needed.
- Lay the lamb leg on a board, skin side down, meat side open and flat. Massage all over with a pinch of salt and pepper.
- Spoon over the stuffing in an even layer over the lamb.
- Roll up the leg meat to seal the filling inside, tie with butcher’s twine/string at regular intervals with six lengths of string to make sure the stuffing is secure.
Cooking the stuffed leg of lamb
Wood or coal fire
- Before you begin your prep, ensure your fire or coals are preheating.
- To test if your coals are ready for cooking you should be able to hold your hand over the coals/fire at the same height as where the lamb leg will be for about 4 to 5 seconds.
- Lamb can be hung by a hook in the shank or a stake horizontally through the roast for a rotisserie style fire.
- Cooking time will also vary using a fire so you might be best to use a thermometer to measure the internal temperature to your desired done-ness. Medium rare 60ºC, medium 70ºC, well done 78ºC.
- While the lamb is resting, simmer the tray of juices on a medium heat and add a small amount of water, stirring and scraping the sticky lamb juices off the tray.
- Rest lamb for at least 10 minutes before carving.
Oven
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC,
- Place lamb onto an oven rack so the heat will surround the whole leg. You will also catch the juices to make a gravy.
- Roast for 1 hour 10 minutes, or until the lamb is golden, this will give you a medium rare roast and will be pink in the middle. Cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes if you prefer your lamb well done.
- Take the lamb out of the oven, cover with foil and a tea towel and rest for at least 10 minutes before carving.
- While the lamb is resting, simmer the tray of juices on a medium heat and add water until you get your desired gravy consistency, stirring and scraping the sticky lamb juices off the tray.
Serving
- Slice the lamb and spoon over the tray juices.
- Serve with roast potatoes and vegetables of choice
- Leftovers are great in a sandwich cold the next day
Stuffed leg of lamb FAQ:
Do you cover lamb when roasting?
Due to the pace in which a leg of lamb cooks, there is no need to cover it when you are roasting.
How do you keep a leg of lamb from drying out?
There are two crucial steps you can take to ensure your lamb doesn’t dry out.
- Leave any fat on the meat to assist with basting the cut, keeping it moist.
- Moderate the heat so excess moisture isn’t drawn out.
How do you cook lamb so it’s tender?
Lamb is already a tender cut of meat, so you shouldn’t have to do too much to make it fall off the bone. Often in lamb the muscle fibers seize up, then relax into a state of tenderness after more cooking, so if it’s not to your liking, simply cook for a little longer and then let it rest.
How long should lamb be cooked for?
How long you cook your lamb will depend on the method of cooking and how rare you like your meat. For a stuffed leg of lamb, we recommend 1hour 10 minutes in the oven, or if you’re cooking over a fire, depending on the level of heat and quality of the coals, we recommend up to 3 hours.
There you have it, it’s as simple as that! The most incredible stuffed leg of lamb recipe, perfect for a crowd, is now at your disposal. Whether you’re looking for delicious recipes, or meat processing equipment, FPE can help. When you order with FPE, you receive comprehensive customer support, including spare parts supply, equipment training and maintenance. And if you sign up to the FPE newsletter, you get first access to our mouth-watering recipes.
