Slow roasted Greek lamb
Succulent slow roasted Greek lamb and potatoes with garlic, rosemary and lemon is a showstopper meal, perfect for Easter.
Slow roasted lamb is synonymous with Easter and this succulent Greek lamb cooked with potatoes, garlic and rosemary is going to become a family favourite in no time. Slow roasting the lamb in wine and stock allows the meat to become fall-apart tender and results in a rich delicious gravy to pour over the lamb when serving. The potatoes suck up all those glorious flavours from the lamb, garlic, rosemary and wine. They are so good, your guests will be begging for more.
I used the gorgeous oval casserole in the beautiful new colour, Meringue, from Le Creuset. There is just no better cookware to use (I literally use my Le Creuset casseroles daily) but this oval casserole is a dream for roasts and slow braises. And how gorgeous is that colour? Creamy and luscious, just like a perfect meringue. Click Here to check out the rest of the range. Everything from enamelled cast iron cookware to beautiful stoneware to complete your kitchen. I mean.
How do I cook a leg of lamb?
Leg of lamb can be cooked to a rosy medium rare to be sliced and served with side dishes or cooked low and slow until it is fall-apart tender. To cook the lamb to a shreddable texture, season generously with salt, pepper and dried oregano. Add peeled and chopped potatoes, garlic, rosemary and oregano into an oven-proof pot (with a lid) and plae the lamb on top. Pour in white wine (you can use red if you want a darker gravy) and stock. Place in the oven and allow to slow roast for 3-4 hours until the lamb is tender. Remove the lid and turn up the heat to allow the lamb and potatoes to brown and crisp up.
Allow the lamb to rest for 10-20 minutes. At this point you can pull the lamb out of the pot and pour the gravy into a jug and allow the potatoes to continue roasting while the lamb rests. Slice/shred the lamb and serve with the gravy and potatoes.
What temperature should a leg of lamb be?
For the lamb to be medium rare to rare, the interior temperature should read 62ºC/145ºF, however, if you are looking for the lamb to be very soft and succulent, the lamb will be ready when the meat can easily be shred with a pair of tongs.
Love lamb? Try these recipes:
- Indian-spiced lamb chops
- Slow-braised lamb shanks
- Easy sticky lamb ribs
- Greek lamb chops with Tzatziki
Slow roasted Greek lamb
Ingredients
- 2.5-3 kg (approx 6.5lbs) bone-in leg of lamb
- 2 tbsp dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 6 large potatoes peeled and sliced into 6 chunks each
- 1 onion roughly chopped
- peel of 1 lemon
- 1 head of garlic halved
- 3 sprigs fresh rosemary
- 1 cup white wine
- 2 cups lamb/beef stock
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 200ºC/400ºF.
- Place the peeled potatoes, onions and lemon peel in a large, oven-proof pot/casserole and season with salt, pepper, oregano and olive oil. Add rosemary and garlic.
- Drizzle 1-2 tablespoons olive oil over the lamb and season generously with salt, pepper and oregano. Place the lamb over the potatoes then pour in the stock and wine.
- Cover with a lid and place in the oven. Allow to roast for 30 minutes then turn the heat down to 160ºC/320ºF for 3-4 hours until the lamb is tender.
- Remove the lid and turn the heat back up to 200ºC/400ºF and allow the lamb to roast until golden brown (approximately 1 hour). At this point you can remove the lamb and cover with foil to rest for at least 10 minutes, ideally up to 30 minutes. Pour the stock into a jug and place the potatoes back in the oven to roast until golden brown and crisp.
- Slice/shred the lamb once rested and serve with the potatoes and gravy.
Nutrition
This post is sponsored by Le Creuset SA. All opinions, images and words are my own.
Hi, how long would you recommend slow roasting a 4kg leg of lamb?
Thanks,
Larisa
I would work on 4-5 hours if you want leg of lamb that can pull apart. It also depend if the bone is left in the leg of lamb as that will need longer cooking time.
Hello! I am planning on teaming this for the upcoming holiday, and my lamb is 3.6 lbs and semi boneless-should I roast it for only two hours?
Thank you!
For a more precise result I would use a meat thermometer.
I’ve got a 3kg leg of lamb but don’t have a big casserole dish – would it work in a roasting dish with aluminium foil covering it as a lid?
Yes, it will work fine.
What if My lamb roast doesn’t have a bone?! Will this still work?
It will, you will just need to adjust the cooking time as it will cook much faster.
Wow! I love lamb and this recipe looks wonderful! One question before I go to buy the ingredients – what type of potato do you use? I’d be inclined to use Yukon Gold, but I want to be sure because of the raves about the potatoes. Thanks so much for helping me finalize my much needed braised lamb recipe!
Yukon gold will be perfect.
It was a wonderful lunch. Groans of satisfaction all round. I could eat those potatoes all week. I’m just confused about the instruction to pour out the stock…….I had no stock at all. It was all absorbed into the potatoes. I used Tsatzki as the “gravy”. I will make this again…..
Hi there, Im making this tonight! We have 4 lbs of lamb. How long should we slow roast it for? Only 2 hrs instead of 2-3?
I would start with two hours, yes. Check on it regularly and when it can pull apart easily, it’s ready!
Could I use a slow cooker instead of a casserole dish on the oven?
You could, yes.
This so was delicious. As it’s summer I served it with your tzatziki recipe plus a greek salad and hummus. Thank you!
Sound delicious!
Hi there, would you be able to tell me what size your oval casserole Le Crueset is?
It’s a 28cm. 🙂
Hi?
Your recipe sounds amazing! I just bought a lamb for my family’s weekend gathering and can’t wait to try your recipe. One quick question: if I don’t have lamb/beef stock, is it possible to use any substitute? Will using just water be alright?
Thank you so much!
Just water or wine is perfect.
Being of armenian descent, lamb is a staple. Let me tell you this was the best Christmas eve meal we’ve ever had. Those potatoes? Holy cow. So creamy in the middle but with a nice crisp on the outside. I really want to make yhis again when I host new years eve. Can beef be substituted for the lamb? Do Ineed to cook it at different temps/times? This recipe is a new addition to our rotation. I just need to know how many variations I can make! Thanks Alida for a wonderful recipe!!
Beef will work well, just adjust the cooking time to ensure the beef is cooked to your liking. It really depends on the cut and the size of the beef you use. So happy you liked this recipe. 🙂
Loved this. The soft garlic, lemony gravy and those potatoes! Everything was great.
Those potatoes are heaven, right?
Best lamb recipe I’ve tried. So easy and comes out perfect every time.
Wow! That’s a wonderful compliment. Thanks Rachel!
The lamb was the perfect main for our family’s Easter. So tender and I must say, the potatoes were the best I’ve ever had. Will be my go-to from now on.
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that.
Can’t wait to try this!
Hope you love it!
Easter lunch sorted! That looks fantastic and the new Le Creuset collection is so up my alley. Lovely.
Thanks Christine! Hope you love it.