BBQ Spring 2017 | Page 77

Hot & Fast Butterflied
Leg of Lamb

Hot & Fast Butterflied
Leg of Lamb recipe

Lamb and live fire are a match made in heaven and this method is fast, enables you to achieve that beautiful charred exterior and deliciously juice interior, and because there’s no bone to worry about it carves like a dream! 

Set up the BBQ for a  2 zone cook, with half the charcoal grate free from coals and the other with lit coals spread evenly over the grate. This gives you a hot and cool zone to cook on.  I recommend using a chimney starter to light your charcoal or lump wood, but it’s not essential.  Just make sure you wait until your fuel is fully ashed over. 

If purchasing your lamb from the butcher, you can always ask him or her to debone and butterfly it for you.  If you’re like me however, you’ll want to do it yourself, this is where I call on the wonderful tutorials you can follow online and I promise, as long as your knife is sharp, it really isn't difficult.
ingredients 

1 deboned and butterflied leg of lamb 
2 tbsp olive oil 
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped 
2 sprigs of fresh rosemary and a small bunch of fresh thyme, leaves removed and finely chopped 
Zest of a whole lemon 
Salt and freshly ground  pepper 
Serves 8 (But cook a whole leg even if there’s just the two of you.  You can never have too many cold cuts in the fridge and the leftovers make the most incredible shepherds pie! 

Method 

Rub the deboned and butterflied lamb all over with the olive oil, herbs, garlic and lemon zest. Season with plenty of coarsely ground black pepper and, to begin with, a little salt.

Ideally leave the lamb to marinade in the fridge overnight, although I’ve done this recipe with only an hour to marinade and it was still beautiful. 

Remove the lamb from the fridge and allow to sit at room temperature for an hour before cooking. At this stage, season the meat with a little more salt. 

Set up your BBQ and aim for a cooking temperature of around 200˚c.  Begin by cooking the lamb directly over the coals for 8 minutes, turning regularly to prevent flare-ups.

Once well seared transfer to the indirect side of the grill.  Place the lid on the BBQ, vents open, and cook for 20 minutes (for medium). Remove from the grill and set aside the rest. 

I served the lamb sliced thinly and stuffed into pittas with mango salsa, shredded lettuce and avocado. But you could just as easily serve it as a straightforward roast.  It would also be great with couscous, or along side a nice Greek salad. Get creative! 

Kelly@DreamingOfTGL
www.dreamingoftgl.com