The perfect recipe for one of the most popular Greek dishes, Greek roast lamb shank! Greeks love their lamb dishes and they love them well done. But never dry, rather slow cooked tender and moist. This traditional Greek roast lamb recipe will cook your favourite lamb cut to perfection.
Make the perfect Greek roast lamb – select the right cut
Making the perfect roast lamb doesn’t need be a chore. The secret to success is carefully selecting your leg of lamb. It must be a generous cut with plenty of lean, tenter meat covered with nice thin layer of fat. When slow roasting, the fat will melt and soak the meat, making it extra tender and giving it that fall-off-the-bone experience.
If you would rather go for a more economical meal go for the more fatty but much cheaper lamb shoulder. If you are looking to impress, the absolutely best cut is nothing else than a large rack of lamb (chops) but its the priciest part of all so reserve only for special occasions.
How to cook your Greek roast lamb to perfection
There are two tricks to make your traditional Greek roast lamb to perfection; strong, intense flavored seasoning and slow cooking. Lamb has a very intense flavor, so it is best seasoned with fragrant spices. Rosemary, garlic and freshly ground pepper are the perfect match for a traditional Greek take to this dish.
To make sure the flavours fully infuse the meat cut each garlic clove in 4 slices, make some small holes on the leg using a sharp knife and stuff the garlic in them. The garlic will melt when slow roasted and soak in the meat giving it an intense, fragrant flavour.
To get that fall-off-the-bone experience from your traditional Greek roast lamb, roast it at 180C (350F) for about 2.5 -3 hours, depending on the size of your cut. The best way to know if your lamb is cooked is using a meat thermometer. When it reaches 77°C (170°F) its fully done. For more tips on how to cook your lamb click here. Finally don’t forget to flip and baste the meat to keep it nice and moist!
How to cook the potatoes
In Greece when preparing Greek roast lamb it is almost a rule to add the potatoes in the same pan with the lamb, so that they get all the juices and aromas from the meat. The main drawback is that the potatoes are not that crispy as when baked on their own. So it’s up to you to decide if you want to sacrifice a little crispiness for extra flavour.
If you choose to roast your potatoes on their own then try these extra delicious crispy Greek lemon potatoes. And finally serve it with some delicious tzatziki, warm pita bread or crusty bread to mop up all its delicious juices! Enjoy!
The perfect Greek roast lamb recipe! Greeks love their lamb dishes and they love them well done. But never dry, rather slow cooked, tender and moist. This recipe will cook your lamb to perfection. The fat from the lamb melts away and the connective tissues break down to give you this unbeatable, falling off the bone, succulent, flavorful experience!
Preheat the oven at 180C / 350F. To prepare this super easy Greek roast lamb recipe, place the lamb in a large baking tray and scar the surface of the meat with a knife. Make little holes (8-9) on the surface of the lamb, using a sharp knife.
Chop the garlic into 3-4 pieces each clove. Fill each hole on the lamb with some garlic and some rosemary. Drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and season well with salt and pepper. Pour into the baking tray 1 and 1/2 glass of white wine and cover with aluminum foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 1/2 hour.
The potatoes and the lamb cook at different times, so you should add the potatoes later.
After 1 1/2 hour remove the baking tray from the oven, unwrap the aluminum foil and add the potatoes (cut into wedges and seasoned well with salt and pepper). Drizzle with 1-2 tbsps of olive oil. At this point, there should be enough liquid remaining into the baking tray.
Place some aluminum foil on the baking tray and bake for 1 more hour.
Turn the pan out of the oven and unwrap the aluminum foil. At this time, there should be a little wine still remaining in the pan and your Greek roast lamb should be almost cooked, but not colored.
Prepare the glaze for your Greek roast lamb. Into a microwave, heat the honey, until it becomes liquid. Blend the honey with the mustard and lemon juice. With a cooking brush, brush the glaze over the lamb and the potatoes. Sprinkle with some black sugar (optional), so that the meat becomes more crunchy.
Place back into the oven (uncovered) and bake for 20-25 more minutes until the lamb is nicely coloured. Let the meat rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Enjoy this delicious honey-glazed Greek roast lamb with a nice Greek salad and creamy tzatziki sauce!
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