Recipe #74 - Stuffed Lamb Shoulder with Garlic Sauce

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This recipe is courtesy of Chuck Hughes from Iron Chef. I found it on FoodNetwork.com. Surprisingly enough, my mother has never made it before, so it was a learning experience for the both of us. On a side note, I know that there are a lot of pictures on this post, but I really didn't want to leave any of them out. Enjoy!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Take out the lamb and rinse well.

Unroll and flatten the lamb as best as possible. Mine was very thick in a lot of areas, so I had to butterfly it to make it more flat.

For the stuffing:
In a bowl, mix carrots, leeks, celery leaves, parsley, chives, and chervil (if you could find it).

Stuff the lamb shoulder, spreading the herb stuffing over the surface, leaving a 1-inch border. Season the herb mixture with salt and pepper.

Roll the lamb up, tie it up with string at 1-inch intervals, brush it with olive oil and season the meat with salt and pepper.

With a sharp knife, make small incisions in the meat and insert the halved garlic cloves.

In a large oven-proof heavy skillet, heat canola oil on high. Add the lamb leg (or shoulder) to the skillet and sear on all faces until browned, about 10 minutes.

Add the veal (or beef) stock and garlic head. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and put into the oven for about 2 hours for medium, or using a meat thermometer until it reads 165 degrees F for medium or 170 degrees F for well done.

Remove the lamb leg from the skillet and keep warm. 

Mash the roasted garlic in the sauce in the skillet. Strain over a medium-size stockpot and cook until reduced by half. Whisk in the butter. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.

Slice the lamb leg.

Serve with the roasted garlic sauce and Recipe #75 - Spicy Yams. 

Rating: 9

Time: 3 hours 5 minutes

Serves: 6 to 8

Ingredients:

Stuffing

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 leek, finely chopped

1/2 celery root, peeled and finely chopped

1/4 cup celery leaves, chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley 

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chervil

3 cloves garlic, cut in half

Sauce

4 cups veal stock (or substitute for beef stock if you can't find veal)

1 head garlic, cut in half

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons butter, for finishing sauce 

Lamb

1 (4-pound) boneless lamb shoulder (or leg like I used, which is a little more expensive, but worth it).

Canola oil, for searing lamb

Special equipement: butcher's string (which the butcher added for me upon request when I bought the lamb).