Roast Leg of Lamb

If you've never cooked lamb before, especially a leg of lamb, this blog post is for you!

As I mentioned previously, I got a organic, pastured, leg of lamb for my birthday. What a wonderful gift it was! Of course at the time I had no clue what to do with a leg of lamb, especially such a fine quality one such as this. It was a tad outside my comfort zone, but I'm the adventurous sort, and I certainly did want to eat it. I just had to find a way to cook it and not ruin it!

I decided to simply roast the whole thing. It seemed like a simple task, and indeed it was. The ingredients were minimal, but to do this right I had to have all the right equipment, which included a meat thermometer. Instead of going out and buying a fancy digital gadget, I just borrowed one from my dad. The key is knowing what temperature you want your lamb cooked to, and when to take it out of the oven, and even that isn't difficult. You don't need fancy equipment to cook great food.

Roast Leg of Lamb

You will need:
A roasting pan
A meat thermometer

5 pound leg of lamb
2 (or more) cloves of garlic, slivered
1/3 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 teaspoon coarse black pepper
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon thyme

*feel free to use additional herbs and spices to your liking.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees, and combine your salt, pepper and herbs in a small bowl.

Make little slices all over the leg of lamb and insert slivers of garlic.

Rub olive oil all over the meat. Get it nice and oiled up. Use a little more olive oil if you need to.

Rub your herb mixture all over the lamb, getting it nice and even. Let it sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes.

Roast your lamb at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees until the lamb reaches your desired doneness. Baste it with meat juices once or twice while it cooks. Here's the key...

Always remove your lamb 5 degrees below your desired doneness. The meat will continue to cook for a few more minutes after removing it from the oven. Medium-rare measures 125 degrees in the center (about one hour of cook time,) so you'd want to take it out at 120 degrees. Medium is 145 degrees. Well done is 170 degrees.

Remove lamb from the pan and let it rest for 15 to 20 minutes before carving.

I ate lamb for a week, and loved every minute of it. I can't wait to get my hands on another one of these. Some spices compliment lamb very well, such as garlic, rosemary and thyme, but don't be afraid to branch out. It's so easy to make, so feel free to experiment with flavors. If you have something that works really well, let me know! I'd love to give it a try.