Estimated reading time: 6 minutes
Slow roast lamb shoulder is always a treat, especially in the spring at Easter and Mother's Day, or at any time of the year.
Delicious, tender and succulent meat stuffed with garlic and rosemary is totally irresistible and a big favourite in my house.
Best of all, it's so easy to do and, if you need to leave it longer in the oven, it just gets even better.
Bon appétit!
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Why you will love this dish
This is one of those unfussy roasts where you don't need to worry about basting throughout the cooking process, or have any fancy carving skills to serve.
Slow roasting is so great for lamb shoulder because:
- all the connective tissue breaks down adding flavour to the dish
- a large proportion of the fat melts away keeping the meat moist
- whereas overcooking a lamb leg can dry it out, a shoulder is happy sitting in the oven for a few hours longer if you need it too
- perfect for feeding a hungry crowd for a sit down lunch, dinner or for a more casual affair
What are the ingredients?
I've used a whole lamb shoulder trimmed of excess fat from the butcher.
Obviously the size and weight is going to vary and my joint was around 4kgs, which is definitely on the large side. As a guide, for a bone in lamb shoulder, allow 350g to 400g per person. So this piece will serve around 10 people.
Use any size which suits you, as the cooking principles remain the same for whatever size you have.
The rest of the ingredients are really simple and will make the most amazing gravy!
- 1 whole head of garlic for roasting separately and 4 cloves for the meat
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- olive oil - no need for extra virgin, just basic
- 4 sprigs fresh rosemary if they are available
How to make slow roast lamb shoulder in the oven
Preheat the oven to 200C/400F.
First make sure that you have a pan large enough for the meat. It also needs to have sides as high as the meat, as there will be a lot of fat and juices released while cooking.
Put the rosemary sprigs at the bottom of the pan and lay the lamb on top.
Cut the bulb of garlic in half and place in the pan. There no need to peel off the skin.
Peel the remaining garlic cloves and slice each one into three. Make large slits in the lamb and push in the sliced garlic.
Rub the olive oil into the skin and season with the salt and pepper.
Cover the tin tightly with foil, avoiding touching the lamb underneath.
Turn the oven down to 160C/350F and roast for 5 hours
Now remove the foil and turn the temperature up to 200C/400F to brown the meat for about 30 minutes.
Remove the garlic and rosemary then put the meat on a carving tray and cover loosely with the foil for about 30 minutes.
Cut the meat into chunks and serve with the gravy. Squeeze out some of the garlic cloves to serve too. The garlic will be soft, sweet and delicious with the lamb.
How to make the gravy
Drain all of the juices into a jug and leave for a few minutes to allow the fat to rise to the surface. Carefully spoon off the fat into another container and discard when it hardens.
To make the gravy, put the tray onto the hob or stove and add a little wine or stock from the jug.
Turn on a medium heat and use a wooden spoon to loosen anything stuck to the pan then add the rest of the juices.
For an even richer gravy add a couple of tablespoons of redcurrant jelly to the pan.
Add a cornflour slurry to thicken, bring to the boil and serve with the slow roast lamb shoulder.
Recipe FAQs
I love to serve really crispy roast potatoes or more elegant scalloped potatoes pavé if this is a family get together for Easter or Mother's Day.
Braised red cabbage is always good , along with roasted root vegetables, for plenty of colour.
Of course, lamb would not be complete without onion sauce, so make my easy French sauce soubise, the onions are cooked slowly in butter first and it's a great sauce with all meats too.
Keep any leftover meat up to 3 days in the refrigerator. I find it's easier to carve all the meat before it goes in the fridge, rather than try to wrestle with cold meat on the bone. I normally cut the lamb into pieces, bag it and freeze for up to 3 months.
It's easy to make a leftover roast by putting sliced lamb in a casserole dish, pouring over leftover gravy the covering with foil and heating in the oven.
My favourite way is to make a curry, especially if you have leftover sauce soubise, as you already have a slow cooked onion base.
For a simple curry chop the lamb into bite sized pieces and add some plain yogurt to coat with plenty of pepper.
Fry together some crushed garlic and grated ginger and add 2 tablespoons of ground coriander and 2 of ground cumin with ½ teaspoon of chilli powder.
Add the lamb for a few minutes then tip in the remaining onion sauce and heat through to serve.
Oven times for bone in lamb shoulder
It does take time for the connective tissue to break down whatever the size of the joint:
- for 2kg allow at least 3 hours slow roasting and 4 hours for fork tender meat, plus 30 minutes browning time
- for 4kg allow at least 5 hours slow roasting and up to 8 hours for fork tender meat, plus 30 minutes browning time
This recipe is really forgiving and you could cook the meat overnight, ready to serve the following day. It will still be juicy and delicious.
More slow cooked recipes to try
📋 Recipe
Slow Roast Lamb Shoulder
Equipment
- deep sided oven dish
Ingredients
- 1 bulb garlic
- 4 cloves garlic
- 4 kg lamb shoulder bone in
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon salt
- 4 sprigs rosemary
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F.
- Put the rosemary sprigs at the bottom of the pan and lay the lamb on top.
- Cut the bulb of garlic in half and place in the pan.
- Peel the remaining garlic cloves and slice each one into three. Make large slits in the lamb and push in the sliced garlic.
- Rub the olive oil into the skin and season with the salt and pepper.
- Cover the tin tightly with foil, avoiding touching the lamb underneath.
- Turn the oven down to 160C/350F and roast for 5 hours
- Remove the foil and turn the temperature up to 200C/400F to brown the meat for 30 minutes.
- Remove the garlic and rosemary then put the meat on a carving tray and cover loosely with the foil for a further 30 minutes.
- Cut the meat into chunks and serve with the gravy. Squeeze out some of the garlic cloves to serve.
Notes
- for 2kg allow at least 3 hours slow roasting and 4 hours for fork tender meat, plus 30 minutes browning time
- for 4kg allow at least 5 hours slow roasting and up to 8 hours for fork tender meat, plus 30 minutes browning time
Disclaimer: The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
Detailed instructions for this recipe, including step by step photographs, hints and tips, can be found in the main article.
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Food safety
We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
Kechi
This recipe looks and sounds flavorful! Never roasted a lamb shoulder before, wow. Love that you perfectly roasted in the oven, and it looks so juicy!
Bintu | Budget Delicious
Lamb is one of my favourite meats! This sounds and looks so tasty and so succulent too, tempted to have a slow roast lamb shoulder asap!
Jo
All I can say is this was amazing! It was a hit all around the dinner table last night! The roast lamb was perfectly seasoned, Yum!
Claudia Lamascolo
What an awesome recipe and we love lamb!
Dannii
This is a must at easter time. Yours looks perfectly cooked.
Heather
Love lamb for Easter but always intimidated to make it but this sounds simple and delicious!
Jovita
Your lamb shoulder looks amazing! What a great festive meal. Thank you for the recipe, definitely bookmarking this one!
Lauren Vavala
My fiance LOVES lamb, but I'm not a fan so it's great to find easy recipes like this that I can make for him for special occasions.
Katie Beck
This looks absolutely glorious! What a perfect holiday meal, will be trying this possibly for Easter Sunday 🙂
Gina
Absolutely love lamb this time of year and can't even think about eating anything else for Easter! Such a simple preparation that makes for a delicious main dish, thank you!
Amanda
Hi San. That's such a great tip! I'll definitely try this method next time I make this. Thanks, Amanda
San
I was taught to prepare the shoulder by cutting around the shoulder blade: from the wide end slide a blade around the bone without cutting through the skin, so the blade is left in a pocket. I tie a piece of string around the wide end to stop it opening during cooking.
When the joint is cooked, remove the bone by grabbing the end (hot!) and twisting to detach it from the ligaments at the top. Then you can carve the blade end by just cutting down vertically through the skin on the top. Chunks or slices 🙂