Leg of lamb advice?

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I don't usually cook whole joints....I thought I'd cook this leg of lamb slowly in the oven but all the recipes I can find include onions, garlic and wine. I don't want that...I don't particularly like meat roasted in wine etc.

Can I just put olive oil, salt and rosemary on it and cook it slowly? Any other advice?

Thank you!

[quote Whenwillthewashingend]@purplebagladylovesgin that sounds fantastic. How long do you slow cook for?

Another leg cooking novice. [/quote]
You can cook lamb fairly quickly and it's still safe to eat, but I like it falling off the bone and to carve it with a spoon.

170oC for minimum of 4 hours. Check after this time and return to the oven if it's not soft. It really depends on the size of the joint and the temperature it entered the oven at. But lamb keeps warm for ages, so timing the end part isn't critical.
The secret is to tuck it in with greaseproof paper and add the water and seal tightly with foil. This keeps everything moist. You can't really go wrong with cooking lamb, it carries on improving with cooking. The only downside is it can dry out, this method makes sure it doesn't.

Thank you so much. I have added grease proof paper to my list.
I can cook any other joint easy, but I've only done shanks up to now.

I love it with anchovies stuffed in slits along with garlic and rosemary.
It doesn't make it fishy, just gives it an amazing depth of flavour.

@IHaveBrilloHair I love the sound of this. I'm going to try it.

Does that slow cooking method work for medium/rare? I have a table full (outdoors, obviously) of carnivores on Sun who like pink lamb.

I cook leg of lamb a lot. I only like it cooked long and slow so you can take it off the bone with a spoon. I cook it for about 6 hours on 140 with veg underneath and some stock and wine.

www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/spiced-roast-lamb

I use this recipe and cook on 140 for about 3-4 hours. It literally falls off the bone and delicious. Best marinated for about 3 days.

Wow, that looks amazing.
For a special meal I also like to do lamb biryani with side dishes.
I use a recipe from an Indian lady I know who has a website.

@purplebagladylovesgin

Yes, I chop celery, carrots, onions up into 2cm chunks and make a thick layer on the roasting pan. Throw in half a cup of water. The Seasoned meat goes on top. Then I tuck it in with a square of greaseproof paper then seal the whole pan with tight foil. This make a hot steamy environment for the roast and makes your gravy at the same time.

Towards the end of a very long roasting, I remove the lamb, pour/scrape the veg juices into a saucepan and then return the lamb without cover into hot oven to crisp the outer fat.

This part is last minute; To the juices in the pan I add some boiling cooking water from the cooked veg to go with the meal. I mash it up with a potato masher to get max flavour out of the caramelised veg, then pour through a sieve. Discard the mashed sieved veg and retain the liquid. This if left for 10 mins it will allow the excess fat to rise and can be skimmed off. I now cheat! I bring the remaining liquid up to the boil and stir in good quality gravy granules.

Always tastes amazing. Don't tell anyone I cheat with gravy granules!

Sounds lovely. Which gravy granules do you use please?

Making a shopping list !

I just stick it in the roasting tin, have it au naturel - with proper gravy.

I always do Jamie Oliver Best Roast Leg of Lamb at Easter. Never fails.

Whack the leg straight onto the oven shelf and let the fat and juices fall on the potatoes in a tin on the shelf below. Well worth having to wash the oven shelf for. Makes the best roast potatoes. The first time I was sceptical and thought the potatoes would be soggy so had some emergency Aunt Bessies on standby but they were not required.

If I wanted to do a slow cooked lamb I would use shoulder.

@LyingWitchInTheWardrobe

I use Tesco finest beef and red onion granules but any good grade granules work.
Because you already have a decent lamb stock to make it up with the flavours marry.

Lovely, thanks purplebagladylovesgin, I will get some and give them a try.

I really miss the Homepride flour granules/thickener in the blue tub. They were flavourless, just a thickener, but idiot-proof for me.

@LyingWitchInTheWardrobe

Lovely, thanks purplebagladylovesgin, I will get some and give them a try.

I really miss the Homepride flour granules/thickener in the blue tub. They were flavourless, just a thickener, but idiot-proof for me.

Sainsbury's sell similar. I use these too but not for gravy.

www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/product/cooking-ingredients-pastry-savoury-mixes/mcdougalls-thickening-granules-170g

Thanks again, purplebagladylovesgin, I do shop in Sainsbury's so will look out for those.

We will be having 7 hour lamb this Sunday.

Take a leg of lamb and whatever veg is going bendy in the fridge. Chop the veg into rough chunks and put aside

Brown the lamb really well all over in a hob proof casserole dish. Seriously you want it almost burnt. If you don't brown it then it goes grey. The darker it is, the more colour you get in your gravy
Stick the lamb on a plate, poke holes in the lamb and stuff with garlic/rosemary/whatever you want. Sprinkle a bit of salt on top

In the casserole dish you have just used, put your chopped veg in and top up to the top of the veg with stock/wine/whatever you want
Put lamb leg on top of veg and put in a 130 oven for 7 hours. You'll know when it's done as the meat just falls off the bone.

Mmmmmmmm

When its done, take the lamb out and sieve the juice left in the pan to remove veg chunks

Return to the hob and thicken with a mix of cornflower and water. If its a bit grey you can always add a few gravy granules for colour.

Thank you for the advice. The lamb was absolutely beautiful. It fell off the bone, and have plenty left to make a curry.