Greek Style Spit Roast Lamb

I am somewhat of a food purist, and knowing that great roasted joints of lamb is synonymous with the food haven that is Greece, I put together some fabulous Greek flavour with a lovely leg of (Welsh in this case) lamb.  While this would make a wonderful roast for the oven it is simply spectacular as a spit roast on a BBQ.  The marinade is also wonderful on other cuts like lamb chops, cuts of chicken and also pork.

Rich delicious lamb with fresh Greek flavours.

Ingredients (serves 4)

Part boned leg of high welfare lamb approx 1.2kg

Marinade

2 tblspn oil (I use avocado)

1tspn white wine vinegar

zest and juice of a big unwaxed lemon

4-8 cloves of garlic depending on how strong you like it

tblspn dried or fresh oregano 

tblspn finely chopped fresh rosemary

black pepper 

Method

Marinate the meat for a minimum of 5 hours, and a maximum of overnight.  Mince the garlic and mix with all the other marinade ingredients.  Coat the meat evenly in the marinade, If the leg of lamb is already rolled and tied, then use the end of a fork or other slim blunt utensil to poke the marinade into the middle of the joint.  If it isn’t already tied, then tightly tie three or four times along the length of the meat using suitable cooking string.  This will hold the marinade in while it cooks and keep it juicy.   Place the meat and marinade in a dish or plastic food bag and refrigerate, taking it out an hour before you want to cook it (cooking fridge cold meat, especially with a bone, is often more uneven).

Infusing with flavour.

Once the meat has marinaded and come to room temperature, thread it onto the spit lengthways.  Reserve the remaining marinade.

Set the BBQ to a high temperature, and once its heated, place the lamb at a high temperature with the lid closed for 20 minutes, after which reduce the heat to medium.  Leave the spit turning for the next 1 hour 20 minutes, basting with the remaining marinade and checking regularly to make sure the spit hasn’t stuck or that the meat is getting too dark. If it does get too dark, lightly wrap the meat in foil, and remove it 10 minutes before  the end of cooking.  These times will give a medium to well done cut of lamb, BBQs vary so be sure to keep an eye on the meat.

When its cooked, remove the meat from the spit and leave it to rest for at least 20 minutes before carving.

I like to serve this with a fresh Greek Salad, plain yogurt, pitta bread and spanakopita (great for getting kids to eat spinach).

Fit for a Greek King…or a special BBQ

tip: if you are going to roast this in the oven, be sure to prop the meat up so that its not resting on the base of the roasting dish, and stewing in the juices.  I often use big chunks of chopped carrot and onion as a stand for this reason and it adds extra flavour.