CHRISTINE CAPENDALE
CHRISTINE CAPENDALE
CHRISTINE CAPENDALE

Pomegranate Slow-Roasted Leg of Lamb

  • Overview
  • Ingredients
    12 items
  • Directions

The ULTIMATE Sunday roast!  Juicy, tender and packed with flavour and goodness.

Serves 8

30 ml   olive oil

3          onions

2          garlic bulbs, wrapped in foil and roasted

1          leg of lamb (±2 kg), well-seasoned

300ml  lamb OR chicken stock

2          pomegranates, cut in half for roasting

SPICE PASTE

15 ml   olive oil

7,5 ml  paprika

15 ml   dried oregano

2          garlic cloves

2,5 ml  chili flakes or one red chili chopped and seeded

5 ml     sea salt

30 ml   pomegranate molasses

            Zest 2 lemons

45 ml   lemon juice

 

GREMOLATA (mint, parsley, garlic & lemon relish)

100 ml lightly chopped mint

            zest of 2 lemons

60 ml chopped parsley

2          garlic cloves, finely chopped

15 ml   olive oil

            Sea salt

15 ml   lemon juice

 

  • TO MAKE THE SPICE PASTE: Combine all the ingredients for the spice paste and blend well to make a paste. You can also use a pestle and mortar.
  • Rub it into the lamb several hours ahead, cover and chill.
  • Remove from the fridge 30 minutes before roasting to get to room temperature.
  • Preheat the oven to 150°C
  • TO SLOW-ROAST THE LAMB: Brush a large, deep roasting tin with the 30 ml olive oil, then thickly slice the onions into rounds and lay the slices flat in the middle of the tin.
  • Lightly score three long, diagonal incisions across the top of the lamb and place it in the tin on top of the onion slices.
  • Pour the stock around the lamb and cover the tray with one or two very large pieces of foil, creating enough space over the lamb so that the foil doesn’t stick to the meat.
  • Slow-roast the lamb for 5 hours, basting every hour.
  • Turn the heat up to 180°C for the last hour, then 30 minutes before the end, baste the meat again and remove the foil for the remaining cooking time. Add the pomegranate halves to the roasting tin and let it roast with the meat.
  • The meat should be almost falling off the bone. Take the tray out of the oven and spoon over the basting juices one final time, but do not put the tray back in the oven. Cover the tray with foil for 10 minutes to let the lamb rest and soak up the juices while you make the relish.
  • TO MAKE THE RELISH: Combine all the relish ingredients and mix well to combine

TO SERVE: Serve the lamb on a platter, adding the onions from the roasting tin if you wish. Spoon the relish over and scatter with some pomegranate seeds. Use the roasted garlic as garnish OR squeeze the soft garlic over the lamb