Roast Leg Of Lamb With Orange, Rosemary And Garlic

Total Time: 1 hr 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 1 leg of lamb
• 1 unwaxed orange
• 1 bulb of garlic
• 1 large handful of fresh rosemary sprig
• 1 large glug olive oil
• 200 ml water
• 200 ml orange juice
• 200 ml red wine
• 1 lamb stock cube
• salt, to season

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 450°f.
• 2 rinse the lamb and pat dry with kitchen towels.
• 3 peel the orange layer of rind from the orange, into strips about 2cm by 1cm.
• 4 cut a few of the garlic cloves lengthways into batons about 2mm across.
• 5 take a strip of orange peel, wrap it around a couple of the garlic batons and a few rosemary leaves. with a very sharp knife, make a deep whole in the lamb and push the parcel into the meat, deep enough so that you can't see it. (don't be afraid here - the deeper it goes, the more the flavours will infuse).
• 6 repeat all over the lamb until you've used all the orange peel. don't forget the underneath.
• 7 allow to rest for about an hour.
• 8 with the flat of a knife, bash the remaining garlic cloves (unpeeled) and place them in the bottom of a roasting tray. lay the remaining rosemary sprigs on top, then lay the lamb on these.
• 9 cut the orange in half and squeeze the juices and flesh over the lamb, rubbing it in, and add the extra orange juice to the pan.
• 10 pour over a good glug of olive oil, and season well with salt.
• 11 place, uncovered, in the oven and cook for 20mins.
• 12 reduce the temperature to about 350f and put a temperature probe into the thickest part of the lamb.
• 13 check occasionally and, if required, add a little water to the pan.
• 14 once the internal temperature reaches 130f, remove the lamb from the oven, put on a warmed plate and cover well, with foil and *plenty* of tea towels. set aside.
• 15 put the roasting tray on the hob, over a medium heat, and add the red wine and stock cube. you may need to add more water here, depending on how much has evaporated in the oven.
• 16 reduce until thickened to a gravy consistency. serve over your lamb, accompanied with roast potatoes and mint sauce.