Ingredients
| 1 bone-in leg of lamb or hogget, about 3kg | |
| 1 teaspoon fennel seeds | |
| 2 teaspoons rock salt | |
| 1 teaspoon peppercorns | |
| 5 tablespoons olive oil, plus a little to drizzle | |
| 5 cloves garlic, smashed plus 2 cloves, finely sliced | |
| 1 cup (290g) pitted olives, drained | |
| ¼ cup capers | |
| 2 bay leaves | |
| 3 sprigs oregano, broken in half | |
| 4 sprigs thyme | |
| 1 lemon, sliced | |
| 2 medium-sized butternut squash | |
| 50ml milk | |
| 50g butter | |
| 500g broccolini |
Using the Mediterranean method of slow roasting meat wrapped in paper keeps the less fatty lamb leg moist and juicy and intensifies all the flavours. It is great for older lamb or hogget, or lamb that has been frozen. If you can find large baking paper this is best but you can make a large sheet by joining 3 x 90cm pieces together along the long sides with a few tight folds. It will leak juice but doesn’t affect the end result.
If you have the time, I like to roast it slower for longer, but it is also great at a slightly higher temperature for less time.
I’ve served it here with pumpkin mash to soak up the juices, but potato or kūmara are also great.
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Instructions
| 1. | Heat the oven to 150℃ or 160℃ (see introduction). |
| 2. | Place a large sheet of baking paper in a roasting tray that fits the lamb snugly and place the lamb leg on top. |
| 3. | Grind the fennel seeds, salt and pepper together and rub into the lamb all over along with 2 tablespoons of the oil. |
| 4. | Add the smashed garlic, olives, capers, bay leaves, oregano and thyme around the lamb. |
| 5. | Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a frying pan and fry the lemon slices for about 5 minutes to brown. |
| 6. | Arrange these over the top of the lamb. Deglaze the pan by adding ¼ cup water and letting it bubble up, scraping up any bits from the base of the pan with a wooden spoon. |
| 7. | Pour this around the lamb. Fold the paper over and around the lamb, creating a good seal. |
| 8. | Roast for 6 hours at 150℃ or 4½ hours at 160℃. |
| 9. | While the lamb roasts, cut the butternut squash in half lengthways and scoop out and discard the seeds. |
| 10. | Sprinkle the cut surfaces with salt and drizzle with a little olive oil. |
| 11. | Roast the butternut halves for about 1½ hours until very tender. |
| 12. | When they are ready, gently heat the milk and butter, then scoop out the roasted butternut flesh and mash with the milk, seasoning with salt and pepper. |
| 13. | This can be reheated before serving. |
| 14. | Arrange the broccolini on a large roasting tray and drizzle with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, scatter over the sliced garlic and season with salt. |
| 15. | When the lamb is cooked, remove from the oven and increase the temperature to 200℃ fanbake. |
| 16. | Roast the broccolini for 10 minutes until charred and tender. |
| 17. | Rest the lamb for 10 minutes before slicing off the bone. |
| 18. | Pour all the juices, olives, lemons and flavourings over the meat and serve with broccolini and mash. |
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