Marinated lamb with asparagus and salsa verde
Marinated leg of lamb with hassleback potatoes, asparagus and a wild garlic salsa verde
Serves 6
Ingredients:
2.5kg Todenham Manor Farm leg of lamb
Lamb Marinade:
Handful of fresh rosemary finely chopped (stalks removed)
3 garlic cloves (crushed or grated)
1 lemon (zest)
Olive oil
1tsp salt
Black pepper
Wild garlic Salsa Verde:
Handful of wild garlic (you could substitute with parsley/chives)
Small handful of parsley and mint
1 tbsp capers
Juice of ½ lemon
75 ml olive oil
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp honey
Pinch of salt
Method:
1. Mix all of the marinade ingredients in a bowl.
2. Score the top of the lamb diagonally across both ways to create a diamond shape and massage the marinade all over the top and underside. Tie 3 or 4 pieces of string around the lamb to secure it. Marinade the lamb in the fridge for a few hours or overnight. (* Note – scoring is optional and can be left out, just ensure you marinade overnight for the flavors to infuse!)
3. Preheat the oven to 190c Fan. Place the lamb in a roaster or deep roasting tray, pour around 200ml water into the base, place a lid on or cover with foil and roast for 1 hr 50 mins for pink in the centre. (or 20 mins per 500g plus an extra 10 mins) Rest for at least 15 minutes.
4. Try to ensure you baste the lamb with the juices a couple of times during cooking and top up water if needed. 15 mins before the end of cooking, remove the lamb from the oven drizzle with honey and return to the oven without a lid to turn the top golden and caramelized.
5. For the hasselback potatoes, slice multiple times ¾ way through, drizzle with oil and a sprinkle of salt. Roast in the oven for around an hour, shaking and turning a couple of times during cooking. Add the bulb of garlic sliced in half and some rosemary after the first 30 mins to prevent burning.
6. For the salsa verde finely chop the herbs and capers and mix well in a bowl with the lemon juice, vinegar, honey, olive oil and season to taste. Boil the asparagus until tender (around 3 mins)
7. Plate the lamb with a drizzle of the cooking juices, some salsa verde the potatoes and asparagus.
