Pic of Shoulder of lamb with braised lentils

Shoulder of lamb with braised lentils

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Meat mains

Shoulder of lamb with braised lentils

Main Serves 6 3h 10 min
Although not offering as high a ratio of lean meat as leg, shoulder has more flavour and benefits from slower cooking. This makes a lovely Easter meal accompanied by a big green salad with lots of rocket. Lentils are amazingly lamb friendly – try reheating them the next day with leftover scraps of lamb and a sausage or two to get even more out of this recipe.

Ingredients

for the roast

  • 1kg joint lamb shoulder
  • 3 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cumin seed
  • 1 tsp dried mint
  • 2 tbsp olive oil

for the lentils

  • 4 streaky bacon rashers, finely chopped
  • 1 each onion, celery stick and carrot, finely chopped
  • 400g dark green lentils, soaked for 1 hr
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • veg stock (double the volume of soaked lentils)
  • salt and pepper

Method

Prep time: 1h 10 min
Cooking time: 2h

  • Step 1

    Preheat oven to 160°C/Gas 3.

  • Step 2

    Trim the lamb of excess fat and score it with a sharp knife.

  • Step 3

    Crush the garlic, salt, cumin seed and mint in a pestle and mortar. Mix with the olive oil and smear over the lamb. Leave for an hour at room temperature.

  • Step 4

    Place the lamb on a rack in a roasting tray. Roast for 2 hours, turning a couple of times.

  • Step 5

    Meanwhile, fry the bacon, onion, celery and carrot in the olive oil until soft, then add the lentils and stir for 1-2 minutes.

  • Step 6

    Cover with hot stock, season, and gently cook until the lentils are tender (about 30 minutes).

  • Step 7

    Serve the lentils with pieces of roast lamb on top.