How to make Colm O'Gorman's perfect Easter Sunday roast lamb

Try this twist on a classic, a slow roasted spiced lamb shoulder with pomegranate

Colm O'Gorman's perfect Easter Sunday roast

I love slow-cooked lamb; is the perfect Easter Sunday roast. For this recipe, I have used lamb shoulder instead of a leg of lamb as I find it is better suited to a low, slow cook like this.

You could serve this roast lamb with more traditional sides such as roast potatoes and roasted root vegetables, or you could go for a full Middle Easter feast and have it with flatbreads, pickled chillies, hummus, and a herby green salad. 

Try making some pickled red onions to go along with either option. The sharpness of the onions in their pickling juice will balance out the sweetness and fattiness of the lamb beautifully.

To make the pickled onions, peel and very thinly slice two red onions. Heat 250ml of white wine vinegar, 125g of caster sugar and half a teaspoon of salt over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. 

Pour the mixture over the sliced onions and let them pickle away until you are ready to serve your lamb.

Colm O'Gorman's Easter Sunday Roast

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

For this recipe I have used lamb shoulder instead of a leg of lamb as I find it is better suited to a low, slow cook like this.

Servings

6

Preparation Time

 20 mins

Cooking Time

 4 hours 0 mins

Total Time

 4 hours 20 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• Slow Roasted Lamb Shoulder

• 3-4 cloves garlic

• Zest and juice of a lemon

• 3 anchovy fillets

• 2 tsp ground cinnamon

• 2 tsp ground cumin

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 1 tsp flaky sea salt

• A handful of fresh mint leaves

• A good grind of black pepper

• 1.5kg shoulder of lamb

• 3-4 red onions

• 250ml cold water

• 60ml pomegranate molasses

• 1 tbsp honey

• Greek Yoghurt with Courgette and Mint

• 1 large courgette

• 20g fresh chopped mint leaves

• 500g Greek yoghurt

• Juice of half a lemon

• 1 tsp honey

• ½ tsp flaky sea salt

Method

1. Peel and roughly chop the garlic. Wash the fresh mint and pluck the leaves, discarding the stalks which are too fibrous to use in this marinade. Whizz the garlic, mint, zest and juice of the lemon, the anchovies, cinnamon, cumin, oregano, black pepper, and the sea salt in a food processor until you get a smooth marinade. If you are using fine sea salt, remember to adjust the quantity, you will need to use just half the amount given above.

2. Put the shoulder of lamb in a roasting tin and pour over the marinade. Massage it into the lamb, making sure that you coat the meat well. Cover with foil and pop it into the fridge. It is best to marinade the lamb for 24 hours but do give it four hours at a minimum.

3. Remove the lamb from the fridge about thirty minutes before you plan to put it into the oven. Preheat the oven to 160 Celsius. Peel and thickly slice the red onions, keeping the slices whole. Remove the lamb from the roasting tin, arrange the sliced onions in a layer in the centre of the tin and place the lamb on top of the onions. Add 250ml of cold water and re-cover the roasting tin with foil and pop it into oven. The secret to really tender lamb is to roast it low and slow, so you cook this shoulder of lamb for four hours in total. You can leave it to its own devices for most of that time and get on with your day.

4. When the lamb has been roasting for three hours, remove it from the oven. Carefully lift the lamb out of the tray and drain the liquid into a fat separator. Allow the fat to settle on the top of the cooking juices and then pour the juices into a saucepan, discarding the fat. If you do not have a fat separator, simply pour the juice directly into the saucepan and allow it to sit for a few minutes so that the fat rises to the surface and then skim it off with a spoon.

5. Pop the lamb back in the tray with the onions, and put it back into the oven for another thirty minutes.

6. Add 60ml of pomegranate molasses and one tablespoon of honey to the juices in the saucepan. Bring the pan to the boil, before reducing it to a simmer. Allow it to simmer for about twenty to thirty minutes until it has reduced by at least a third and thickened up a bit. You will use this to glaze the lamb and to make a sticky sauce with the roasted onions.

7. Pour the glaze over the lamb, increase the oven temperature to 190 Celsius, and pop it back in the oven for another twenty to thirty minutes. Check the lamb after twenty minutes and if it is nicely caramelised and the glaze has cooked down into a sticky sauce with the onions, it is ready. Give it another ten minutes if necessary, but it will not need more than that.

8. While the lamb is finishing off in the oven, make the Greek Yoghurt with Courgette and Mint to accompany it. Use a box grater to coarsely grate the courgette. Pop the grated courgette into a pan of boiling water for just two to three minutes. Drain it immediately and rinse well with cold water to stop it from overcooking. Tip the courgette into a clean tea towel and squeeze out any remaining water.

9. Whisk the yoghurt, salt, honey, and lemon juice together in a bowl. Add the courgette and the mint and stir to combine thoroughly. Set aside until you are ready to serve.

10. When the lamb is done, remove it from the roasting tin and place it on a serving platter. Let it rest for ten to fifteen minutes before serving. Scoop the roasted onions and sauce from the roasting tin into a bowl and keep warm until you are ready to serve.

11. Dress the lamb with some fresh pomegranate seeds and a little chopped flat leaf parsley just before you serve. The meat will be very, very tender, your carving knife will cut through it like butter. Serve the lamb with the Greek Yoghurt with Courgette and Mint and the roasted onions and sauce on the side.