Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg

Hands down the easiest way to cook lamb leg, this Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg is fall apart tender and incredibly succulent. 2 minutes prep, pop it in the slow cooker, brown it briefly in the oven while you make a killer gravy using the lamb juices. A roast made for sharing with family and friends!

After more lamb leg ideas? Browse all my roast lamb recipes!

Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg

In my world, there are only 2 ways to cook a leg of lamb: either perfectly cooked so it’s pink and juicy inside (see my classic Roast Lamb with Gravy), or long and slow so it’s fall apart tender.

There is no in between!

Well, there is. But it’s dry and no amount of gravy can salvage it. It’s also very sad. 😂

Fall-apart-tender slow cooked lamb leg can either be done in the oven or in the slow cooker. Click here for the slow roasted oven recipe, this is the slow cooker version!

I know it sounds counter-intuitive to use the words “roast lamb” and “slow cooker” in the same sentence. But actually, it’s the right description for this recipe because it is cooked in the slow cooker and finished off in the oven to get that beautiful browning. And also to reheat it, in case the slow cooker finished and it was sitting on the warm function for a while.

My slow cooker is a standard size round one and I was able to fit in a 1.9kg / 3.8lb lamb leg purchased from the grocery store (Woolworths in Australia) because the shaft of the leg comes cut so it can be bent to fit into the slow cooker. Vereeee practical!

I’ve used a small full lamb leg here, but it can easily be made with half lamb legs which don’t have the shaft so they will easily fit inside a standard slow cooker.

And of course, if you have one of those oval shaped slow cookers, you could make this with a full size lamb leg! After all, arguably one of the best things about roast lamb are the leftovers. Sandwiches with lamb and gravy. SO GOOD!!!

Gravy for Roast Lamb

And while it’s browning in the oven, we make a quick gravy using the juices in the slow cooker.

No need to deal with the clunkiness of making the gravy in a roasting pan, like you do when you roast lamb in the oven. Nope, this is a super simple one made in a saucepan using butter instead of the drippings in the roasting pan. And of course the juices left in the slow cooker.

All. That. FLAVOUR!

This is the sort of food made for sharing with family and friends. I know there’s something grand about placing a whole lamb leg on the table as a centrepiece. But a pile of incredibly juicy, tender lamb is just as impressive in my books – and there’s no need to pass the plates over and wait for it to be carved. Just dive right in! – Nagi xx

More Roast Lamb Recipes

I love a good roast lamb – so I’ve shared a few over the years!

Roast Lamb Leg with Gravy

Greek Butterflied Lamb Leg

Slow Roast Leg of Lamb

Greek Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb

Slow Cooked Lamb Shawarma

Slow Cooked Lamb Shoulder

Roast Lamb

Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg
Watch how to make it

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Slow Cooker Roast Lamb Leg with Gravy

Author: Nagi

Prep: 5 minutes mins

Cook: 10 hours hrs

Total: 10 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

Dinner, Slow Cooker

Western

5 from 126 votes

Servings5

Tap or hover to scale

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Recipe video above. The easiest, most succulent roast lamb you'll ever have! This is not the carving sort of lamb, you can just tear the meat off using tongs.

Ingredients

• ▢ 2.0 kg / 4 lb lamb leg, bone in (Note 1)
• ▢ 1 tsp salt
• ▢ black pepper
• ▢ 2 large garlic cloves , minced
• ▢ 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme OR rosemary (or 2.5 tsp finely chopped fresh)
• ▢ 1 tbsp olive oil
• ▢ 2 cups / 500ml beef stock (or chicken) (Note 2)
• ▢ 1 sprig rosemary , optional

Gravy:

• ▢ 50 g / 3 tbsp butter
• ▢ 3 tbsp / 40 g flour (any white)
• ▢ 2 cups / 500 ml braising liquid from slow cooker , strained
• ▢ Salt and pepper

Instructions

• Place lamb in slow cooker or on work surface. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, thyme or rosemary and garlic. Drizzle over oil, then rub on both sides.
• Pour beef stock into slow cooker, add sprig of rosemary (if using).
• SLOW COOK on low for 10 hours, or pressure cook on high for 1 hour 40 minutes. (See oven version here)
• The lamb should be tender enough to pull off with tongs, but still holding together (just!). Carefully remove lamb from slow cooker and transfer to tray.
• Drizzle lightly with oil (any). Bake at 200C/390F for 20 minutes or until browned. Remove and rest for 10 minutes before serving with gravy.

Gravy:

• Strain liquid in slow cooker into a bowl - you will have more than the 2 cups of broth you added, I usually have over 3 cups. Measure out 2 cups of liquid, reserve remaining liquid just in case.
• Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add flour and cook for 1 minute.
• Add a bit of liquid, mixing as you go so it dissolves. Then add remaining liquid. Whisk if there are lumps.
• Increase to medium high heat and cook, stirring regularly, until thickened to your taste. Use remaining liquid to thin if required.

Recipe Notes:

1. Make sure you get a lamb that fits in your slow cooker! I have a standard size round slow cooker and I was able to fit in a 1.9kg/3.8lb lamb leg which had the shaft partially cut so it bends which I got from Woolworths. In Australia, you can purchase half lamb legs (also Woolworths) which come without the shaft /bone which will fit in easily into a standard slow cooker. If you have an oval slow cooker, you can probably fit in the lamb leg even without the shaft cut.

A 2kg / 4 lb bone in lamb equates to about 1.5kg/3lb boneless lamb, same cook time.

If your lamb is about 1 - 1.25kg / 2 - 2.5lb, you can reduce the cook time to 8 hours. If your lamb is larger than 2.25kg /4.5lb, increase it to 12 hours.

2. If you use chicken broth, the gravy is slightly lighter in colour. The reason I use broth and not just the lamb juices is that lamb juices are very...well, LAMBY. 🙂 Too lamby for gravy. I find that 2 cups of broth combined with lamb juices = perfect gravy flavour.

3. OVEN: See the Slow Roasted Lamb Leg recipe!

4. Servings - 2kg/4lb bone in is about 1.5kg / 3 lb of meat which reduces to about 1.2kg/2.4lb of meat after cooking. This serves 4 generously or 5 for normal servings (in my opinion!).

5. Nutrition - This is a conservative calculation because it doesn't take into account the lamb fat and drippings that are discarded (which accounts for plenty of the calories!). Unfortunately I don't know how to estimate that, so I've not made an adjustment to exclude discarded fat.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 357gCalories: 747cal (37%)

Keywords: Roast Lamb Leg, Slow cooker roast lamb, Slow Roast Leg of Lamb

Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @recipe_tin.

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