Crispy Roast Lamb Leg

My trusty crispy roast lamb leg recipe works every time. It’s well seasoned, has a good crust, and juicy, perfectly pink meat (that’s a mental image to make your mouth water). Make it for a group in spring, summer or Autumn; it’s a great table centerpiece for a dinner or lunch party. I’ll show you how to make an easy gravy from the pan drippings, too.

The key to a good crust on roasted joints of meat is preparation. You need to season the meat and leave it uncovered in the fridge for a period before cooking, and you need to blast it with heat before turning down the oven. The cooking time will vary depending on the weight of your lamb leg; for this recipe, I was roasting a 2.2kg bone-in leg of lamb, which is just under 5 pounds and it took 1 hour and 45 minutes plus 15 minutes of resting time, so 2 hours in total. It is essential that you take it out of the fridge with enough time for it to come to room temperature first before cooking.

🛒 Ingredients

1. Leg of lamb – A whole leg of lamb on the bone will feed 8 people and typically weighs between 2.2kg and 2.8kg (4.8lb – 6lb). Look for moist, plump, and brownish-pink meat. Feeding a smaller group? Try a lamb rump roast instead.
2. Garlic – I use fresh, grated garlic, and you can use as much as you like; it’s your rodeo. I used one large clove.
3. Rosemary – Roast lamb and rosemary is a classic combination, although you could use thyme instead if you prefer.
4. Extra virgin olive oil—A good-quality EVOO will do you well, and its high smoke point makes it suitable for roasting. If you use another oil, check that it can handle high temperatures.
5. Salt and cracked black pepper – Fresh seasoning is essential to bring out the flavor of the roast lamb leg. Don’t use ground pepper in this dish as it will burn in the hotel oven.

👩🏼‍🍳 Instructions

Prepping lamb leg

1. At least 4 hours before cooking (but ideally more), unwrap the lamb leg and blot any moisture from the surface with paper towels.
2. Lightly score the surface with a sharp knife in a criss-cross pattern.
3. Grate the garlic into a small bowl, finely dice the rosemary sprigs, and add a very generous pinch of both salt and freshly cracked black pepper.
4. Mix in the extra virgin olive oil to make a loose paste and rub it all over the lamb, getting it into the grooves. I find using a silicon pastry brush can help.
5. Place it back in the fridge uncovered.

How to roast lamb leg

1. Remove the lamb from the fridge and allow it to return to room temperature (at least 30 minutes). Roasting the lamb straight from the fridge will take around 30 minutes longer than this recipe.
2. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F (no fan).
3. Place the lamb fat side down on a roasting tray with a rack. Roast for 30 minutes. The lamb leg will shrink and change shape as the water content evaporates and the fat renders down.
4. Carefully turn the lamb over so it is fat side up, and roast for a further 15 minutes.
5. Turn the oven down to 175°C/345°F and roast for a further 30-45 minutes or until the lamb leg reaches your desired internal temperature. I personally aim for 63°C/145°F for pink and juicy but not too rare, as the residual heat in the meat will continue to cook it a little more once you take it out of the oven.
6. Rest the lamb leg roast for 15-20 minutes before carving. Cover it with aluminum foil and a tea towel to keep it warm.

🌡 Lamb leg internal temperatures

• Rare 60°C/140°F.
• Medium rare 60–65°C/140-149°F.
• Medium 65–70°C/149-158°F.
• Medium well done 70°C/158°F.
• Well done 75°C/167°F.

🍽 How to make gravy

What we are going to do is make a roux out of the lamb fat in the roasting pan. It’s a simple way to make a base for a thick and tasty roast lamb leg gravy and it hardly takes any time at all.

1. In the roasting pan, whisk two to three teaspoons of plain flour (all-purpose flour) a little at a time into the lamb drippings. Keep whisking until you have a smooth, thick paste (a roux) with no lumps.
2. Meanwhile, heat some lamb, chicken, or vegetable stock in a saucepan over medium heat. Take a small ladle of this warm stock and whisk it into your roux in the roasting pan to loosen any other lovely bits of roast lamb flavor from the pan.
3. Now add the loosened roux back into the stock and stir to combine. Keep stirring as it heats through, and the flour thickens the gravy and cooks out (around 10 minutes). Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Strain the gravy into a serving jug through a sieve and serve.

What to serve with roasted leg of lamb

I love to serve crispy lamb leg roast with ratatouille and garlic potato roses for a delicious yet deceptively easy dinner. There’s some prep involved but barely any skill, and once everything is in the oven, it’s very hands-off, which gives you time to relax or host guests. For dessert, try classic profiteroles with chocolate truffle filling, a zesty lemon sponge pudding, or a plum and pecan crumble.

🍷Wine Pairing

I love serving a Syrah or a GSM with roast lamb, so the typical French Rhone Valley red wines.

🥣 Equipment

Use a good roasting tray with a rack to rest the lamb on. I also recommend using a meat thermometer to ensure you are cooking your meat to the desired temperature.

❄️ Storage and Freezing

Store leftover roast lamb leg in an airtight container in the fridge and consume within 3-4 days. Use the bone to make lamb stock, which you can use in soups, stocks, and sauces at a later date.

🦴 How to make lamb stock

Add the lamb leg bone to a large saucepan filled with water. Bring it to a gentle boil with the following in the water:

• One teaspoon of whole peppercorns
• One teaspoon of salt
• 1/2 an onion
• One whole clove of garlic
• Bouquet garni made from parsley, rosemary, and bay leaves.

Cook for 3-4 hours, checking that it does not boil down and adding more water if necessary. Allow to cool before straining into a clean, airtight container and either freezing or refrigerating for 2-3 days until ready to use. You can freeze stock for up to 3 months.

📝 Other main course recipes

Looking for other recipes like this? Try these: