Roast leg of lamb with garlic and lavender recipe
Rosemary and thyme are classic flavours to match with lamb, but lots of other herbs also go well with it. Personally, I find lavender wonderful. There are just two things to remember: measure it carefully (as too much can make your food bitter) and only use the flowers, not the stalks.
A few years ago, while on holiday in Provence, we were walking to town to get some baguettes and pains au chocolat for breakfast when we found ourselves amid a sea of lavender fields. The colour and aroma were truly magical.
On the way back we picked huge bunches of it. Some we tied together to take home and dry, and some I decided to put in the pot … this is what I made. You need to prepare this dish the day before you want to eat it.
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg leg of lamb
- 1 garlic bulb, unpeeled and halved horizontally
- 8 lavender sprigs, flower heads only
- 150 ml olive oil
- 6 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
- 2 shallots, unpeeled and halved
- 1 pinch sea salt
- 1 pinch freshly ground black pepper
Details
- Cuisine: French
- Recipe Type: Main
- Difficulty: Medium
- Preparation Time: 745 mins
- Cooking Time: 70 mins
- Serves: 4
Step-by-step
- Put the lamb in a cling film-lined roasting tin that fits in the fridge and season with black pepper (don't season with salt now, as it draws the blood out of the lamb. Salt is always added just before cooking meat).
- Add the garlic bulb and 6 heads of the lavender and pour 90ml/3fl oz/generous 1/3 cup of the oil over the top. Rub the seasoning in thoroughly, then wrap the lamb in the cling film and leave in the fridge overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Unwrap the lamb, put it back in the roasting tin with the garlic bulb and dab it with kitchen towel. Pierce it several times with a sharp knife and push a halved garlic clove inside each opening. Add the shallots to the pan, pour the remaining oil over the top, season with salt and pepper and then roast in the preheated oven for 1 hour until golden brown on the outside but still pink and moist inside. Remove the lamb from the tin and wrap it in foil to keep warm.
- Pour 100ml/3.5fl oz/scant 1/2 cup water in the roasting tin to deglaze, then return to the oven and cook for 3-4 minutes until reduced. This will gather all the flavours from the caramelization of the meat and give you the concentrated juice you need.
- Unwrap the lamb. You will find some juice has also gathered in the foil – add it to the juice in the roasting tin, stir and set aside. Slice the lamb, then drizzle it with the juice, sprinkle with the remaining lavender flowers and serve with sautéed potatoes.
This recipe is from the French Brasserie Cookbook by Daniel Galmiche text © 2011
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