Help! Is this lamb shoulder big enough for 4 people?

[MrsGypsy]

I have two friends coming for dinner tomorrow and I want to use a 1.74kg lamb shoulder I have in the freezer. It's about 11 inches long (at its longest point) and about 7 inches wide (at its widest point). There is a bone, but not much (visible) fat. It cost £13.64 - making me think there MUST be enough meat on it for 4, surely? I did think I would bulk out the dinner with a starter, lots of potatoes and veg., but am I being overly-optimistic?

DH thinks no way, and has visions of guests going home hungry.....

Should be fine :)

Sounds plenty, how are you going to cook it?

I have an amazing Sainsbo's mag recipe I want to do that involves slow roast lamb shoulder, feta and roasted peppers.

Actually Taffeta, I thought I'd do Nigella's slow roast recipe with pomegranate and mint (if I can find the pomegranate). I know it's become a bit of a cliche but we've only ever made it once, loved it and thought we'd give it another go. As we live overseas, no one's done it to death over here.....

Bit stuck for a starter though - any thoughts? We'd quite like to go Moroccan-y.

Sounds yum

I'd go for flatbreads and dips - baba ganoush etc?

It sounds like it should be enough but it's always hard to judge other people's appetites. If you're not sure you can always add a tin of tomatoes and some chickpeas and cumin, which will spice it lightly and bulk it out cheaply.

Taffeta I like your thinking! I had to look up the baba ganoush - I know it, but never knew it was called that. So it's a yes to that, and some home made hummus, I think. Can't believe I didn't think of that, brain must be having a slow day today.

hamster our friends have appetites that could put teenage boys to shame. I was thinking of doing some kind of gravy with the lamb even though Nigella's recipe is to go with salad. I'll do your idea of the tomatoes, chickpeas & cumin, maybe as a side dish so it doesn't interfere with the pomegranate.

Dessert will be a trio of puds: a slice of bought in baklava, a small chilli chocolate pot and a miniature Queen of Pudding (not sure yet what fruit to put under the mini meringue - probably berries with alcohol).

Thanks so much - I'm rather looking forward to this now!

I had a look online and the first thing that came up was a recipe for a 2kg shoulder from JO which served six! So even if your friends are really greedy, it should be plenty.

sounds yummy - can I come? :o

You're most welcome Dowager! I changed my mind on the recipe as I just found one for Persian lamb which requires 24hrs in the slow cooker, so the lamb is already on...... No pomegranate or mint, but a thick paste of onion, turmeric, garlic, garam masala, cumin and chili flakes. Can't wait!

(Between that and the pud, we're having a bit of a feast.....) :)

I like lamb shoulder covered with garlic and rosemary, cover with foil and cook for 5 hours.
Gorgeous.

taffeta our mates cooked us that sainbos one and it was delicious.

I roasted a half-shoulder of lamb for dinner tonight. It had 3 hours at 120 in a cast-iron crock pot, then an hour and a half in the gently-cooling oven. I was able to pull it off the bone with a spoon.

MrsGypsy, I don't want to teach Gypsies to suck heather, but you'll need to put those chickpeas on to soak overnight if you're not using tinned. Still assuming that you're not using tinned, they'll also need a brisk boil in water for 15 minutes before you put them in the tomatoes. If you're cooking for gannets what I would do is chop an onion, fry in olive oil for a few minutes, add cumin and salt and pepper, fry for a minute or two to get the cumin smells going, then add the tin of tomatoes, simmer for 5 minutes and then add the chickpeas and a squeeze of tomato puree. Simmer for 20 minutes or so with the lid off to get the sauce to thicken.

Best of luck with your hungry horde!

Hamster thank you so much for the chickpea recipe - I will be using tinned, as I've not come across uncooked chickpeas around my way. But I really like the sound of that sauce and will give it a go.

How your lamb turned out is what I'm hoping for with mine.

I really I hope I don't look at my friends tomorrow and think "gannets". But I probably will.....Please God don't let me actually say it.