This is how the Greeks make roast lamb – cooked until tender, half braised in a garlic lemon flavoured liquid that transforms into a luscious sauce – no mucking around with gravy! This Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb takes hours and hours to roast, but it is EASY, virtually foolproof and very hands off. A perfect centrepiece for Easter, Sunday Roast or any other occasion for feasting!!
All around the world this weekend, there will be gatherings of family and friends to celebrate Easter. I was quite interested to learn that ham is very popular in America. Here in Australia, it’s all about lamb and seafood.
I was very tempted to share a salmon gravlax – have you ever made it yourself? It’s so insanely easy – gourmet food on a budget!! But because I shared a side of salmon recipe for Christmas (my mother’s Miso Marinated Side of Salmon!), I decided to go for lamb this Easter.
But not just any lamb roast. A Greek one. Rubbed with a simple spice mix, slow cooked until tender, half braised so it sucks up all the yummy lemony garlicky herby flavours.
No carving knife required. See?
Aussies love their lamb. In my family, Sunday Night Roast Dinners are an occasion that triggers fiery correspondence between us kids as we debate the menu. You can read one such dialogue in this Slow Roasted Rosemary Garlic Lamb Shoulder, along with my self proclaimed family title as Roast Queen.
The thing with roasting a leg of lamb is that unless (and even if) you have a meat thermometer, it is actually quite hard to cook the roast perfectly so it is blushing pink on the inside, moist and juicy. It can take just 20 minutes for a leg of lamb to go from perfect to dry.
It can even overcook while resting. Truly. Been there, done that – cutting into the lamb straight out of the oven to take a peek, grinning smugly when I spied pink, set it aside to rest for 30 minutes, then when I carved it, there was not a hint of pink left.
I was temporarily dethroned as Roast Queen when that happened. I’d like to say I stepped down like a good sport, but no, I was overthrown.? I’m taking back the title for this Greek lamb though!!
Flavour, flavour, flavour, juicy, juicy, juicy, easy, easy, easy. That’s what this Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb is all about. As long as you allow for sufficient cooking time, it is really hard to go wrong with this.
In true Greek form, this lamb is packed with extra flavour by stuffing bits of garlic into incisions made all over the lamb, then it’s rubbed with paprika and garlic powder. Add a simple braising liquid to keep it beautifully moist and to infuse it with even more flavour, then cook it long and slow.
Oh! The other advantage of this Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb? NO MUCKING AROUND TO MAKE GRAVY! The braising liquid reduces down to an intensely flavoured sauce that needs to be generously poured all over the lamb. This is how it is supposed to be. And I’m not complaining!!!
This lamb does take hours to roast. Hours upon hours. 7 hours for a 3.5kg/7lb leg of lamb, to be precise. But it’s hands off, low maintenance time.
And at the end of it, look at what you get!! Now THIS is a step up from the usual Sunday night roast! – Nagi x
PS Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb is pictured here with my Truly Crunchy Roast Potatoes. They really are….well, crunchy!! 😉
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Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb
Ingredients
- 12 cloves of garlic, peeled
- 7 lb / 3.5 kg leg of lamb (Note 1)
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tsp paprika powder
- 3 tsp garlic powder (or sub with onion powder)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 large onions, quartered (white, brown, yellow, red)
- 10 sprigs of thyme
- 3 sprigs rosemary
- 3 tsp dried oregano
- 3 dried bayleaves (or 5 fresh)
- 1/2 cup / 125 ml lemon juice (2 - 3 lemons), plus more to taste
- 1 1/2 cups / 375 ml white wine (or sub with chicken broth/stock, low salt)
- 2 cups / 500 ml chicken broth (liquid chicken stock)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220C/430F (fan forced/convection) or 240C/465F (standard ovens). (Note 2)
- Use a small knife to make around 25 incisions all over the lamb, with most on the top.
- Cut around 6 cloves into slivers and stuff them into the incisions.
- Sprinkle the lamb generously all over with salt, pepper, paprika and garlic powder. Drizzle with olive oil and rub all over the lamb.
- Place the lamb in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes or until it has a nice brown crust.
- Remove from the oven. Turn the oven down to 160C/320F (fan forced) / 180C/350F (conventional).
- Turn the lamb upside down. Pour / place all the remaining ingredients in the pan around the lamb (including remaining garlic cloves). Fill the roasting pan with hot water so it comes up about 1/4 - 1/3 of the way up the height of the lamb.
- Cover with lid or with baking/parchment paper then 2 layers of foil. Bake for 3.5 hours. (Note 3) Top up water if it dries out (e.g. Might happen if your lid is loose)
- Remove the roast from the oven and remove the lid/foil. Turn the lamb over so it is the right side up.
- Cover again and roast for a further 2 1/2 hours, or until you can pull meat apart with forks.
- Remove cover and roast for a further 20 - 30 minutes (to brown). (Note 3)
- Remove from the oven and transfer lamb to serving platter. Cover loosely with foil and rest for 30 - 40 minutes.
- Strain liquid into a clear jug. The fat will rise to the top. Scoop/pour most of it off - I get 3/4 - 1 cup. There should be 2 - 3 cups of Sauce left. Adjust salt, pepper and lemon to taste.
- Serve lamb with the Sauce on the side and Truly Crunchy Roast Potatoes (heat oil while lamb is in the oven, then cook potatoes when the lamb is resting).
Recipe Notes:
4. Adapted from this Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb by Kalofagas.MORE ROAST LAMB
Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg with Gravy – The most succulent lamb leg you’ll ever have!
Classic Roast Lamb – Perfectly pink and juicy inside, with a killer gravy!
Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder – My favourite cut of lamb for roasting! Super tender, incredible flavour, and so forgiving!
LIFE OF DOZER
Oh, look who made an appearance when I pulled this out of the oven. Sorry Dozer, no lamb for you! Too much garlic – bad for you!
Hi Nagi. Two questions please. I’ve cooked a 4kg leg of lamb through your steps 1-3 for 3.5hrs step 2, 2.5hrs step 3. Should I cook longer as it is a huge piece? I’m only serving it much later tonight. Do I keep it covered or uncovered while it cools down before reheating and moving to step 4. Thanks
Hi Rene, sorry for the late reply. The meat should be tender, if not keep cooking for another half an hour or so. You really can’t go wrong here because it’s slow cooked. I would keep it covered before doing the final step.
Hi Nagi!
Absolutely LOVE LOVE all your recipes! This is my go-to site every time i throw a dinner party!
I have a quick question with the slow roast greek lamb. I want to cook 2 trays of 2kg/leg of lamb.
1) I have a fan forced oven. Can I roast both of them together in a single oven (on two different levels)?
2) If so, would I follow the timing for 2kg lamb?
3) And can I cook this the previous day? Any tips would be super super helpful!
Hi Ruqi, I’m so glad you love my recipes, thanks so much for letting me know! You can always cook this lamb a day ahead and reheat and do the final browning stage before serving. I have all the cooking directions under note 3 for different sizes of lamb, cook as per the 2 kg instructions. This recipe is so forgiving, just ensure the meat is tender before removing from the oven. – N x
so thats cooking 4kg of lamb in total divided in to two different roasting pans – both baked together in one go following the 2kg instructions as per note 3! Hope thats right!
Thanks so much Nagi! You’re the best!
Just made this as a meal to impress my girlfriend the first time she came over… Thank you so much Nagi she loved it
This is a new favorite! We made the lamb last night when my wife asked me to find a good greek style approach to a roasted leg of lamb. We had goose fat left over from the Christmas goose, so we made the truly crunchy roast potatoes as well. Amazing!
A great combo! I’m so glad it was a hit!
I have a boneless 2 kg leg of lamb. How much time should I take off? 1/2hr?
We made it for New year’s Eve. It was amazing and so easy. Thank you.
Hi Nagi. I’m planning to make this with a 2.5 kilo lamb shoulder. Could you help me out with cooking instructions for this please?
Hi! Note 3 has all the times listed for you – total time 5.5 – 6 hours. I hope you love it!
Hi Nagi. Should I skip the first roasting step? As well as flipping it over? Or shall I follow exactly as is with the shoulder?
Hi, Nagi,
I’m planning to make this tonight.
On note #5
“Place the lamb in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes or until it has a nice brown crust.”
My question is
will 30 minutes be too short to create that crust.
Hi Mark – at step 11 you’ll roast further to get the browning 🙂
I just made this recipe with the Greek lemon potatoes and WOW! Both turned out amazing! The flavours were rich and intense. I didn’t have any thyme, bay leaf or rosemary for the lamb, just oregano and it was perfect. Thank you so much for sharing!
Nagi
I have cooked this multiple times and it’s delicious
But I have a problem
I want to make crunchy potatoes with the roast and only have one oven. How do I do this?
Help!
Hi Paula! This will keep for ages wrapped in foil 🙂 So just make the potatoes after the lamb! N x
Hi Nagi, do you think this recipe would work in the slow cooker and then just pop it into the oven for a bit for crunch?
I’m just thinking in terms of “life convenience” and not having to be home for so long to watch the oven. How would you change things to make it still just as delish in the slow cooker?
Nagi, how does one make allowances for no bone? My leg is 2.5 kg no bone, which baking instructions do i follow? thank you
Hi Chiara! I’d go with the 2kg bone in cook time 🙂
so i screwed up majorly: my lamb had no bone in it. i cut the nettign off cuz it seemed to be made of elastic. it is a holiday today and so all the shops are closed. i can’t turn my lamb over cuz it’ll just butterfly open. how is this gonna turn out given that it won’t be turned over… i’m not looking forward to the outcome :/
also, my lamb is 2.5 kg. not sure how to adjust time for this. HELP
It’s ok Chiara! It might look rustic but it’s going to taste amazing 🙂 Have a look at my Lamb Shawarma which is made using a boneless lamb, see how I presented it? Try presenting yours like that. Just a BIG PILE of ULTRA TENDER MEAT – YUM!!!
Mmmm…mmmmmm! Was just like eating a GIANT lamb shank! Sauce was delicious, just added a little more lemon at the end. Thanks Nagi
Glad to hear you enjoyed this Fiona ! Thanks for letting me know – N x
Hey,
If making for 4 would the cooking time still remain or should I half?
Hi Sam – it depends on the weight of the lamb, please see recipe notes for cook times
Your recipes are so gorgeous Nagi!! Making this right now. Thank you!!! Your pooch is beyond adorable too..
He is a cheeky devil… glad you enjoyed this! N x
Hi Nagi. I want to make this for Sunday lunch – could I do the covered cooking the night before and then finish off the following morning? I will be pulling it apart for my extended family to make their own souvlakis. Any advice you can provide would be wonderful. btw I pretty much only cook from this site since discovering it as every recipe I’ve tried so far has been a winner! Sarah.
Hi Sarah! What I would do is cook it until tender completely covered, then before serving, reheat covered then remove the foil and brown it per recipe 🙂 DIY souvlaki – YUM!!!