Slow-Cooked Lamb Shoulder with Mint and Cumin

When you cook this the whole house smells so delicious, A real banger of a dish and a fantastic crowd pleaser .Recipe by Yottman Ottolenghi

Ingredients

• 2 lemons, 1 tsp zest, 4 tbsp juice
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds, lightly crushed
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 25g mint leaves
• 15g coriander
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large lamb shoulder
• 1 celeriac, peeled and cut into wedges
• 5 large carrots, peeled and chopped in half widthways
• 2 heads of garlic, sliced in half
• salt and pepper

Method

1. Place the lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, spices, herbs and oil in the small bowl of a food processor with 1 1/2 tsp of salt and plenty of pepper. Blitz to form a rough paste and set aside.
2. Place the lamb in a large bowl and skewer the meat all over about 30 times with a small sharp knife. Rub the spice paste all over the meat, massaging into the incisions.
3. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or ideally overnight) for the flavours to develop.
4. Preheat oven to 170ºC.
5. Transfer the lamb, along with all the spice paste, into a large high sided baking dish, about 30 x 40cm. Pour 500ml of water into the base of the dish and then cover the tray tightly with the foil.
6. Roast for 1 hour. Reduce the temperature to 160 degrees, fan bake, and add the celeriac, carrots and garlic heads (cut side up). Continue to roast for 5 hours, basting 3 or 4 times during cooking (resealing the tray each time).
7. Remove the foil and return for a final 30 minutes, until the lamb is browned all over, the meat is falling apart and the vegetables are caramelised.