Ingredients
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1.6kg bone-in leg of lamb
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50ml olive oil, plus a splash
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3 oregano sprigs, leaves picked and roughly chopped
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4 rosemary sprigs, leaves of 2 picked and roughly chopped
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1 lemon zested (save the juice for the spring greens, see goes well with)
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1 garlic bulb, cloves lightly smashed
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1 red chilli, pierced
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1kg potatoes, skins on, cut into thick wedges
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3 fennel bulbs cut into quarters lengthways, tops removed, green fronds reserved
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250ml white wine
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250ml good-quality chicken stock
Method
- Remove the lamb from the fridge approximately an hour before cooking it, and make incisions across the meat using a sharp knife. Next, combine the oil with the oregano, diced rosemary and lemon zest. Massage the marinade across the meat, ensuring the mixture fills the cuts that you previously made with the knife.
- Heat your oven to 200C (180C for fan assisted ovens, or gas 6), then place the garlic, potatoes, chilli, fennel and any left over rosemary into the bottom of a large roasting tin. Next, pour over a splash of olive oil, and toss the mixture together. Take your lamb and season it generously with salt and pepper, then lay it on top of the vegetables in the baking tray. Roast in the oven for 45 minutes, and when the lamb begins browning, pour in the stock and wine. Return to the oven and cook for a further 30 minutes if you prefer your lamb rare (reading 55C in the centre on your cooking thermometer), 40 minutes for medium rare (or 55C on your thermometer) or 45 minutes if you prefer your lamb to be cooked through fully (measuring 70C in the centre).
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When you are happy with the internal temperature of your lamb, remove it from the oven and leave it to rest on the side for up to 30 minutes. Reduce the temperature of your oven to 160C (140C for fan/ gas 3), and place foil over the vegetables left in your baking tray. Place this back into the oven while the meat is still resting to allow the vegetables to braise in the juices.
- When the meat has rested, remove the roasting tin from the oven, and scatter your fronds of fennel across the top of the vegetables. Next, place the lamb back onto the vegetables, ready to be transported to your dining table and served.