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Georgian-inspired butterflied leg of lamb, served on a wooden board with pomegranate seeds
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Georgian-inspired leg of lamb

With charred onions, tarragon, mint & pomegranate

Georgian-inspired butterflied leg of lamb, served on a wooden board with pomegranate seeds
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1 hr 10 mins plus preheating and resting
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serves 10

About the recipe

The flavours of Georgia meet the flavours of Essex in this epic butterflied leg of lamb. Cooked on the barbecue until beautifully tender, then served on a bed of charred onions and herbs, this is perfect dinner-party fare. Complete the meal with my Georgian-inspired red rice (see tip).


nutrition per serving

Calories

g

Fat

g

Saturates

g

Sugars

g

Salt

g

Protein

g

Carbs

g

Fibre

of an adult’s reference intake


Recipe From

Georgian tourist board logo

Jamie Cooks Georgia

By Jamie Oliver

Ingredients

4 onions

3 teaspoons blue fenugreek

3 teaspoons dried marigold powder

2 teaspoons chilli powder

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 tablespoon fresh marigold flowers

a few sprigs of fresh rosemary

4 cloves of garlic

1 lemon

1 pomegranate

olive oil

1 x 2.8kg higher-welfare leg of lamb, butterflied (ask your butcher to do this for you)

1 bunch of fresh tarragon (20g)

1 bunch of fresh mint (30g)

cold-pressed sunflower oil

red wine vinegar

Top Tip

It's worth tracking down blue fenugreek and dried marigold powder online for the classic flavours of Georgian cooking. You could try a smaller quantity of regular fenugreek in place of the blue stuff, but you won't get the same authentic results. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to find a good substitute for marigold.

Method

  1. First, light your barbecue. Let the coals burn down to a medium heat, then lift the cooking grill, carefully insert the whole, unpeeled onions among the coals and leave them to cook for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until charred and tender. Remove and allow them to cool.
  2. Meanwhile, pound the blue fenugreek, dried marigold, chilli powder and coriander in a pestle and mortar with a generous pinch of sea salt and 2 teaspoons of black pepper. Pick in the marigold petals and rosemary leaves, peel and add 2 garlic cloves, and pound again. Squeeze in the lemon juice and half the pomegranate juice, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil and muddle together to make a rustic paste.
  3. Lay the lamb out like an open book. Using a small sharp knife, make little incisions into the meat, then rub the marinade all over, making sure you really get it into all those little nooks and crannies. Sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and pepper.
  4. Place the lamb on the barbecue and cook for 40 minutes to 1 hour, turning every 10 minutes – bear in mind that the cooking time will vary depending on the thickness of your lamb. To check that it’s cooked, you could use a meat thermometer – you need the lamb to reach an internal temperature of 55ºC. Transfer to a platter and rest for 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 60ºC.
  5. Peel the charred onions and squeeze them out of their skins, then roughly chop the soft flesh on a large chopping board. Tear over the tarragon and mint leaves, roughly chop it all together, then season with sea salt and drizzle over 3 tablespoons of sunflower oil. Peel and grate over the remaining clove of garlic, add 2 tablespoons of vinegar, sprinkle over the pomegranate seeds and spread the mix across the board to create a base for your lamb.
  6. Move the lamb to the board, then slice it up and tuck in. Delicious served with my Georgian-inspired red rice (see below).

At the beginning of step 3, use a sharp knife to carefully cut off some fat from the lamb leg. Finely chop it, then place in a large casserole pan on a medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and leave it to render and crisp up.

Tear in 1 fresh red chilli, discarding the seeds, then add 2 bay leaves, 2 teaspoons of ground caraway and 2 teaspoons of black pepper, and give it all a good stir. Peel, finely chop and add 2 onions and fry for 5 minutes, or until softened and starting to caramelise.

Pour in 1 litre of water, add 500g of red rice, season with sea salt and mix well. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 40 to 50 minutes, or until the rice is soft but still holding its shape (keep an eye on it, as you may need to add a little more water).

Remove the cooking grill and carefully tip in hot coals on either side of the barbecue to create 2 heat walls – this will give you a hot direct heat on the sides and a cooler indirect heat in the middle. This ensures your meat will get consistent heat throughout and you will be able to control the temperature and cooking more easily. You can also place a tray on the indirect side to catch any drips and fat.

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