Greek Easter Leg Of Lamb With Garlic And Oregano Recipes

GREEK SLOW ROASTED LEG OF LAMB

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 240°C/465°F (220°C fan). (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 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
• 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).

ROAST LEG OF LAMB, GREEK STYLE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Under running water, trim the outer layer of fat from the lamb and blot dry. Allow the lamb to reach room temperature and squeeze the juice from the lemons over the lamb. Slice cloves of garlic, lengthwise.
• Put salt and pepper into a small container. Cut 6 small slots into each side of the leg of lamb, about 1-inch deep. Insert garlic slivers, followed by salt and pepper, into the lamb. Lightly sprinkle top of lamb with oregano. Pour the water into a roasting pan, add lamb, and cover with foil. Roast on lowest rack of oven for 40 minutes to 1 hour.
• Remove foil, lower heat to 375 degrees and roast for 40 to 50 minutes, or until lamb reaches desired temperature. Remove and let lamb stand about 30 minutes as the lamb continues to cook. To test the temperature of the meat, insert a meat thermometer into the thickest part of the leg without touching the bone. For rare lamb, the thermometer should register 140 degrees. For medium, the thermometer should register 145 degrees.

GREEK EASTER LEG OF LAMB WITH GARLIC AND OREGANO

Steps:

• Place lamb, boned side up, in large roasting pan. Drizzle oil all over meat and sprinkle with remaining ingredients. Rub oil and seasonings into meat. Cover pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight to marinate. Let warm to room temperature 1 hour before roasting.
• Heat oven to 425 degrees.
• Remove plastic wrap and place lamb on rack in roasting pan. Roast lamb until meat thermometer inserted in thickest part of meat registers 130F for medium-rare, about 30 minutes.
• Remove lamb to platter, cover loosely, and let stand 15 minutes before carving. Cut meat across the grain into thin slices. Serve with juices collected on platter.

ROASTED LAMB WITH GARLIC AND OREGANO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 475 degrees. In a blender, puree garlic, oil, oregano, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 tablespoon coarse salt, and 1 1/2 teaspoons pepper. Place lamb in a roasting pan; rub with garlic mixture. Roast, turning pan once, 30 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350 degrees; roast, until a thermometer inserted in center registers 130 to 135 degrees, 50 to 60 minutes for medium-rare.
• Meanwhile, make yogurt sauce: In a bowl, whisk together yogurt, parsley, and remaining 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon; season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Transfer lamb to cutting board, and tent loosely with foil; let rest 20 minutes. Remove strings from lamb, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Serve with yogurt sauce.

CLASSIC GREEK ROASTED LEG OF LAMB WITH LEMON-GARLIC POTATOES

Steps:

• Trim the excess fat off the lamb and set aside.
• Finely chop the whole garlic head.
• Combine with the remaining marinade ingredients.
• Place the lamb in a large, deep container or baking dish and pour in the marinade.
• Turn the lamb in the marinade so that it is coated all over.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• Using a mortar and pestle, crush the ingredients for the dry rub all together until they are pastelike in consistency.
• Remove the lamb from the marinade and discard the marinade.
• Make 10-15 small incisions all over its surface using a small, sharp paring knife.
• Stuff each of these little holes with the dry rub and rub whatever is left over the surface of the lamb.
• Season well with salt and pepper and rub the lamb with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
• Place the potatoes in a large roasting pan and toss with the lemon juice, garlic, olive oil and oregano.
• Season well with salt and pepper.
• Place the lamb over the potatoes.
• Roast, frequently basting both the lamb and the potatoes with the pan juices for about 1 hour and 30 minutes, for a well-done leg.
• Add a little water to the pan during baking if necessary to keep the pan juices from drying out.
• Remove the lamb from the oven and let rest for about 10 minutes before carving.
• Keep the potatoes in the turned off oven until ready to serve.

ANNE THEOHAROUS'S ROAST LEG OF LAMB A LA GRECQUE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• It is recommended that you have the butcher remove and set aside the hipbone of the lamb. This is the upper bone that is attached to the main (straight) leg bone. This can also be done in the home kitchen, using a thin, sharp boning knife, neatly cutting all around the meat attached to the hipbone and severing the hipbone from the main bone. Cut off and discard the skin, leaving a light layer of fat.
• Rub two tablespoons of the lemon juice all over the lamb. Sprinkle the lamb with salt and pepper. Sprinkle one and one-half tablespoons of the oregano over the meat and rub it in.
• Make several deep gashes over the meat. Insert slivers of garlic in the gashes.
• Place the meat and the hipbone in a roasting pan and place the pan in the oven. Do not cover. Bake 40 minutes. Pour off the fat.
• Reduce the oven heat to 325 degrees. Pour one and one-half cups of water around the lamb and scatter the onions and celery all around. Bake, basting occasionally, about three hours longer. Check often and, when necessary, add more water.
• Sprinkle the potatoes with the remaining one-half tablespoon of lemon juice, salt, pepper and remaining tablespoon of oregano.
• Make four deep gashes in the meaty part of the lamb and turn the lamb cut side down in the pan. Add a little more water if necessary. Scatter the potatoes all around the lamb and continue baking 30 minutes.
• Turn the potatoes so that they brown on all sides. Turn the lamb and make four more gashes on this side. Place the lamb second side down and continue baking 30 minutes or until the potatoes are thoroughly tender.
• Remove the pan from the oven and discard the celery, onions and hipbone. Put the lamb on a carving board or dish. Put the potatoes in a serving dish. Pour the pan liquid into a bowl and skim off the fat. Pour the remaining pan liquid into a saucepan and reheat. Slice the lamb and serve with the pan liquid and potatoes.

GREEK EASTER ROAST LAMB AND ORZO

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Place lamb in a roasting pan. Add mashed tomatoes, onion, olive oil, oregano, salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Combine and make sure lamb is well coated. Cover pan with a lid or aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven for about 3 hours. Remove from the oven and remove aluminum foil; leave oven on.
• Add water and orzo directly to the roasting pan. Return to the hot oven and bake until pasta is cooked and very little liquid remains, 30 minutes to 1 hour. Add feta cheese and mix until melted and combined.

GREEK ROAST LAMB AND POTATOES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• In large bowl, whisk together the orange juice, mustard, olive oil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Stir the potatoes into the bowl to coat with orange juice mixture. Remove potatoes with a slotted spoon, and place them into a large roasting pan.
• Cut slits into the lamb meat, and stuff the garlic cloves into the slits. Rub remaining orange juice mixture from bowl all over the lamb, and place the lamb on top of the potatoes in the roasting pan. If there's any remaining orange juice mixture, pour it over the lamb.
• Roast in the preheated oven until the potatoes are tender and the lamb is cooked to medium, about 1 hour. A meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat should read 140 degrees F (60 degrees C). Check every 30 minutes while roasting, and add 1/4 to 1/2 cup of hot water if you find the potatoes are drying out. If the lamb finishes cooking before the potatoes, remove the lamb to a cutting board or serving platter and cover with foil while the potatoes continue to bake in the oven.

GREEK ROAST LAMB

Steps:

• Heat oven to 240C/fan 220C/gas 9. Pound the garlic, half the oregano, lemon zest and a pinch of salt in a pestle and mortar, then add the lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil. Stab the lamb all over with a sharp knife, then push as much of the herb paste as you can into the holes.
• Tip the potatoes into a large roasting tin, then toss in the remaining olive oil and any remaining herb paste. Nestle the lamb amongst the potatoes, roast for 20 mins, then reduce the temperature to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Roast for 1 hr 15 mins for medium-rare, adding another 15 mins if you prefer your lamb medium. Baste the lamb once or twice with the juices and toss the potatoes. When the lamb is done to your liking, remove from the tin and let it rest. Throw the rest of the oregano in with the potatoes, scoop from the tin and keep warm.
• Place the roasting tin over a medium flame, add the canned tomatoes and olives to the pan juices, then simmer for a few mins. Serve the lamb with the potatoes and sauce and a simple salad.

TRADITIONAL GREEK ROASTED LAMB AND POTATOES

Steps:

• Pat dry the lamb using paper towels and place it in a roasting pan. Using a sharp knife, make several incisions in the lamb and insert the slivered garlic and half of the rosemary leaves.
• Whisk together the olive oil, salt, pepper, the other half of the garlic (minced), the other half of the rosemary (chopped), thyme, oregano and lemon zest. Pour the marinade over the lamb making sure to cover it on all sides. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• 30 minutes before you are ready to roast the lamb, remove it from the refrigerator and turn on the oven to 450°F.
• Wrap the lamb and its marinade well with parchment paper (not wax paper) and then with aluminum foil (this will ensure that all the juices stay with the meat and do not leek.) If you do not have parchment paper, use two layers of foil instead. Place the roasting pan with the lamb in the middle rack of the oven, cook for 15 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 360°F. Roast for 2 hours.
• While the lamb roasts, cut the potatoes in half lengthwise and then in quarters. If the potatoes are large, cut each quarter in half again. Place them in a medium bowl and toss them with the salt, pepper, oregano, and lemon juice.
• After two hours, remove the roast from the oven, open the wrapping carefully and check it. At this point, the bone should be loose and starting to come away from the meat. If it is not, cover the lamb again, return it to the oven, and roast for another 15 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 400°F. Uncover the lamb; there should be about a cup of its juices in the pan. If there is not enough liquid, add enough hot water to make about 1 cup. Scatter the potatoes around and under the lamb and return the pan to the oven for about 20-30 minutes until the skin of the lamb is brown and crisp (cover loosely with a piece of foil if the lamb becomes too dark before this time).
• At this point, remove only the lamb from the roasting pan and transfer it to a platter. Cover it loosely with some foil and let it rest for 20 minutes. Continue roasting the potatoes for another 15 minutes, or so, until they become soft and have a nice golden color. There should be still plenty of juice in the pan.
• To serve, spoon some pan juices over the lamb, divide it in four portions and serve it alongside the lemon potatoes. Garnish with some lemon slices and enjoy with a glass of Merlot.