Learn how to make the most delcious, boneless leg of lamb roast! It is filled and coated with a flavorful herb-garlic paste, then slow-roasted over vegetables and served with mint gremolata sauce. A special dinner, perfect for gatherings and worthy of your holiday table.
Here’s my family recipe for leg of lamb, with garlic and herbs and slow-roasted in the oven. Growing up, on special occasions and holidays, my Egyptian father would slowly roast a leg of lamb. This was truly a once-a-year type of meal that was relished by all. By the time I fully understood what I was eating, it was too late; I acquired a taste for lamb early on. To this day, the smell of lamb wafting through the house brings me back to those happy times together as a family. This recipe is made with a boneless leg of lamb, that is stuffed with a flavorful herb paste and encased in a flavorful herb crust. It’s absolutely delicious.
Why You’ll Love This Leg of Lamb Recipe
- Perfect for entertaining! This recipe can be prepped up to 3 days ahead, refrigerated, and then roasted the day of.
- Flavorful! The flavorful herb and garlic paste, compliments the lamb flavor perfectly!
- Cook to your desired Temperature: Rare, medium, or meltingly tender (my favorite!)
- A One Pot Meal! It can be made into a whole meal when roasting over vegetables.
Leg of Lamb Ingredeints
- 4-6 lb boneless leg of lamb
- Herbs: rosemary, thyme, sage, parsley and mint
- Garlic cloves
- Olive oil
- Salt and Pepper
- Roasting vegetables (optional) any assortment of potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, beets, parsnips, sunchokes.
Step one: Make the flavorful herb paste. Pick two to three savory herbs like sage, rosemary or thyme, blended in a food processor with flat-leaf parsley, garlic and olive oil. It doesn’t need to be smooth.
Step two: Prep the lamb. Once you unwrap your lamb, make sure to pat it dry. It makes the whole process easier. Sometimes, even an already butterflied leg of lamb will need some trimming and help to get it so it’s flat and rollable. Just remember, it really does not need to be perfect. The idea is to get the roll somewhat even so it’s roughly the same diameter on both ends, for even cooking- but even this is not essential.
Step three: Generously sprinkle all sides with salt and pepper. Spread the herb mixture on the inside, saving some for the outside too.
Step four: Then roll it up as best you can. I usually remove some of the outer fat like you see below. This is a personal preference. Some people leave the fat on like I did here this time, as an experiment, and it is also good– but I prefer it with most of the fat trimmed off. The herb paste will keep it moist.
TIP: If you leave the fat on, score it with a sharp knife, so the herb paste gets into the cuts.
Step five: Wrap it up with kitchen twine, at one to two-inch intervals.
Step six: Rub the outside of the lamb with the remaining herb mix.
Step seven: Place the rolled lamb over a bed of veggies (carrots, potatoes, celery, onion) or over a rack set within a pan.
Leg of Lamb Roast Time
TIP: Because the leg of lamb is a tougher cut of meat, I prefer it cooked until falling apart tender. For the photos here, I’ve cooked it to 125F (rare) and thinly sliced it. It is nice, but full disclosure: it is slightly chewy.
- Rare: cook to 125 F (roughly 20 minutes per pound) Shown in photos
- Medium: cook to 135F (roughly 25 minutes per pound)
- Well-Done: Cook to 150°F (roughly 35 minutes per pound)
- Fall-Apart Tender Lamb. Cook to 175°F (roughly 40 minutes per pound) I like this best!
Serving Roast Leg of Lamb
StoragIng leftover leg of lamb
Leftover lamb roast will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days in an airtight container. Cut into smaller portions and freeze for up to 6 months.
More Favorite Lamb Recipes
- Harissa Roasted Leg of Lamb
- Oven-Roasted Lamb Chops with Indian Curry Sauce
- Irish Lamb Stew
- Lamb Shawarma
- Moroccan Braised Lamb Shanks with Pomegranate
- Turkish Lamb Wraps
- Middle Eastern Instant Pot Lamb Stew
Herb Crusted Leg of Lamb Recipe
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 210
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 mins
- Yield: 8
- Category: Main
- Method: Roasted
- Cuisine: mediterranean
Description
This herb-crusted leg of lamb is a delectable holiday main, perfect for Christmas dinner or Easter Brunch.
Ingredients
- 4 –6 lb boneless leg of lamb- preferably butterflied.
- salt and black pepper to taste
Herb Paste
- 1 cup fresh herbs, packed (a mix of 2 or 3 of the following) thyme, sage, rosemary
- 1 cup Italian parsley, packed ( about a 1/2 a bunch) tender stems ok
- 15–20 cloves garlic
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1/2 tsp salt per pound of lamb
- 5 tablespoons olive oil
Roasting Vegetables
- 6–8 cups variety of chopped root veggies – onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, fennel bulb, parsnips, beets, sunchokes, leeks, whole garlic cloves
- olive oil to coat
- salt and pepper to taste
Mint Gremolata (to serve on the side)
Instructions
- Pre heat 425 F Oven
- Remove lamb from packaging and pat dry well. Trim away any unwanted fat. A little marbled fat is good, big chunks are not. It’s ok to also remove some or all of the outer layer of fat if that doesn’t appeal to you. (If you want to leave the layer of fat on the roast, score it with a sharp knife in a diagonal criss-cross pattern and at 1-inch intervals just till you hit the meat. Place the outer side (side with fat) down. See the recipe post on how to butterfly it to create a rectangle.
- Make the herb filling and crust: Place all the herbs, garlic, salt and pepper and lemon zest in a food processor and pulse until it becomes like very coarse sand. Add oil, scraping down the sides if necessary, pulse until just combined -not too smooth or oily- this should feel like a dry coarse paste.
- Fill. Sprinkle all sides with salt and pepper. Spread 2/3 of the herb paste on the inside of the lamb, saving the rest for the outer crust.
- Roll up the lamb with the filling on the inside and tie at 2-inch intervals. You can either do individual strings and knots or wrap up with one very long string. It really doesn’t need to be perfect, just do the best you can. Rub the remaining filling paste all over the outside of the lamb. (At this point, you can refrigerate for 1-3 days if making ahead. Make sure to bring it to room temperature at least one hour before roasting.)
- Roast. You have 2 roasting options. 1. Roast alone on a wire rack, over a pan (fastest) to catch the drippings giving you a crust on all sides. 2. Prepare a bed of roasting veggies for the leg of lamb to rest on and roast over, collecting the juices (longest, but my favorite and tasty).
- If using veggies: cut any combination of roasting vegetables into bite-size pieces. Toss a little olive oil to coat and sprinkle with salt and pepper, a few springs of herbs, stir and lay the lamb roast directly over top in a large roasting pan.
- Place lamb in a hot 425 F oven for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 325F. Continue roasting, understanding that the size of the lamb will determine roasting time. (See notes). Once cooked to desired doneness (use a thermometer) remove the lamb from the baking dish, set aside on a cutting board, loosely covered with foil, and let the veggies continue to cook, if needed, while the lamb rests 15- 20 minutes. Resting is important here. 😉
- While the lamb is roasting, make the optional Mint gremolata. Combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.
- Slice the lamb and serve with roasted veggies & mint gremolata.
Notes
Leg of Lamb Roast Time
TIP: Because the leg of lamb is a tougher cut of meat, I prefer it cooked until falling apart tender. For the photos here, I’ve cooked it to 125F (rare) and thinly sliced it. It is nice, but full disclosure: it is slightly chewy.
- Rare: cook to 125 F (roughly 20 minutes per pound)
- Medium: cook to 135F (roughly 25 minutes per pound)
- Well-Done: Cook to 150°F (roughly 35 minutes per pound)
- Fall-Apart Tender Lamb. Cook to at least 175°F (roughly 40 minutes per pound)
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6 ounces- without veggies
- Calories: 407
- Sugar: 0.2 g
- Sodium: 514.8 mg
- Fat: 22.9 g
- Saturated Fat: 5.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 1.9 g
- Fiber: 0.4 g
- Protein: 47.1 g
- Cholesterol: 145.2 mg
