Description
Ina Garten’s four-hour lamb recipe promises a rich Mediterranean feast with tender meat that melts beneath fork tines. Mediterranean herbs and slow-roasting techniques create complex flavor profiles for eager diners seeking comfort and culinary excellence.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 leg of lamb (6–7 lbs / 2.7–3.2 kg)
- 1 tbsp kosher salt
- 2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 15 large sprigs fresh rosemary
- 15 large sprigs fresh thyme
- 6 bay leaves
- 2 heads of garlic, broken apart but not peeled
- 1 750-ml bottle dry white wine
- ¼ cup good olive oil
Instructions
- Preheating: Calibrate oven to 300°F (150°C) for slow, gentle roasting environment.
- Lamb Preparation: Massage lamb with olive oil, thoroughly seasoning with kosher salt and black pepper across entire surface.
- Searing: Heat Dutch oven to medium-high, creating intense caramelization on lamb by browning each side for approximately 12 minutes, developing rich exterior crust.
- Flavor Foundation: Deglaze pot with red wine and water, aggressively scraping caramelized remnants while incorporating garlic, rosemary, thyme, and bay leaves to construct complex aromatic base.
- Roasting Process: Nestle lamb into herbaceous liquid, sealing pot tightly with lid or aluminum foil, then roast in oven for 4 hours, periodically basting meat to maximize tenderness and flavor concentration.
- Resting and Sauce Preparation: Remove lamb, tent with foil for juice redistribution, then strain cooking liquid through fine-mesh sieve and reduce over medium heat until achieving glossy, concentrated sauce consistency.
- Serving: Pull apart ultra-tender lamb directly from pot, drizzling with reduced sauce, presenting a luxurious, herb-infused culinary masterpiece.
Notes
- Meat Selection Matters: Choose a high-quality, well-marbled lamb shoulder or leg for maximum tenderness and rich flavor development during the long, slow cooking process.
- Temperature Precision: Use a reliable meat thermometer to ensure internal temperature reaches 195-205°F for fall-apart texture, which guarantees melt-in-your-mouth results.
- Searing Secrets: Do not rush the browning stage – invest time creating a deep golden crust to lock in juices and develop complex caramelized flavor foundations for the entire dish.
- Resting Ritual: Allow the cooked lamb to rest for 20-30 minutes after removing from oven, which helps meat fibers relax and redistribute succulent juices throughout the cut.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 4 hours
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6
- Calories: 600
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 400 mg
- Fat: 40 g
- Saturated Fat: 6 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 34 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 3 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 55 g
- Cholesterol: 120 mg