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I'm thinking about slow roasting a couple of baby lamb legs (by baby lamb legs I mean of a size where one leg feeds one person, with the bone still in). My plan was to brown them on the top of the stove, then roast them at 120C (that's about 250F) for 90 minutes or so. I want them to come out meltingly tender, and am vaguely trying to recreate something I had in Seville.

The other option would be to roast at 180C (that's about 350F) for 30 minutes or so I guess (if that helps you judge size).

Will this work? Should I wrap them in foil to keep the moisture in? They have very little fat looking at them.

Google seems to know very little about baby lamb recipes, and even less about about slow cooking baby lamb.

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  • Are you talking about lamb shanks, or real baby lamb legs?
    – user2052413
    Jun 30, 2015 at 10:01
  • @user2052413 real baby lamb legs.
    – abligh
    Jun 30, 2015 at 11:38
  • Would "baby lamb" mean an especially newborn/young lamb, or is that just an accidental redundancy (since lambs are by definition sheep children) due to language translation?
    – PoloHoleSet
    Oct 4, 2017 at 20:55
  • @PoloHoleSet it may be UK English. Lamb in the UK means meat from a sheep under (from memory) 2 or 3 years old. Baby lamb means new season lamb which is typically only a few months old, and a lighter colour (and smaller in the case of lamb legs). Also see cooking.stackexchange.com/questions/36443/…
    – abligh
    Oct 5, 2017 at 5:49

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Welcome! I think you are pretty much on track with your ideas. However, I would choose to braise with stock rather than "roast".

I would recommend seasoning to your liking and then brush with a light olive oil. Sear on the stove top in the same pan you are going to put in the oven. (Enameled cast iron works well for this, if you have it.)

When browned, add stock to come up 1/2 to 2/3 of the way up the legs. (I use veal or beef.) Cover and place in pre-heated oven. I think the time and temp you planned on using (250°F for approx 90 mins) should work okay, although I usually go a little higher, around 300°F.

I would recommend checking the legs after an hour in the oven. Then check every 20 minutes or so until they reach your desired doneness. This method should give you falling-off-the-bone, melt-in-your-mouth-tender baby lamb.

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  • Thanks @Cindy. Le Creuset pot at hand. Once concern I have re the stock is that after an hour and a half only a little above boiling, won't most of the stock still be there? IE won't I really be 'boiling' the lamb (and hence no maillard reaction)? I was going to go with half an inch of white wine or similar.
    – abligh
    Jun 27, 2015 at 12:53
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    Yes, you should have a fair amount of liquid left. You will get the Maillard reaction during the initial sear. But since the stock (or liquid of your choice) does not cover the meat, you should be getting a combination of a simmer on the bottom and steam on top. This will leave the meat flavorful and moist. (Depending on what I am braising, I sometimes flip it over during the first check.) And you can save and use any liquid that is left for a stock, soup, etc. It will be very flavorful.
    – Cindy
    Jun 27, 2015 at 13:09

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