Barbecued Leg of Lamb

As I mentioned in an earlier post, it is summer here in Australia, which of course is a good time for a barbecue, but then any time is a good time for a barbecue. One of my favourite summer meals is barbecued leg of lamb. I buy the lower half of the leg, and starting from the side of the leg with least meat, slice down the leg and then remove the bone so that I have have a triangular piece of meat left. I butterfly this so that it is about 4 or 5cm thick. If you wish you can butterfly a whole leg of lamb which would feed more people. Here is my recipe using quantities for half a leg.

1 half leg of lamb, about 1.2kg

3 garlic cloves
a knob of fresh ginger
grated rind of 1 lemon or lime
2 teaspoons ground cumin
3 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 cup of olive oil

Remove the lamb from the refrigerator 1 hour before cooking.

Put the garlic,  ginger, cumin, coriander and paprika in a mortar and pound into a rough paste with the pestle. Add the grated rind of a lemon or lime and pound for a further minute, then stir in the olive oil and mix well. You can also process this in a food processor if you wish. Spread the marinade over the lamb by hand, working it in to the meat with your fingers, and leave about an hour for the flavours to infuse the lamb.

This lamb can be barbecued over a gas-fired barbecue grill, or better still, over a charcoal grill. When the barbecue is hot, put the lamb on. Cook for about 12 minutes on each side for medium rare. Put on a plate and cover withe foil. Rest in a warm place for 10 minutes before carving.

When the lamb has been rested, carve the meat into 5mm slices and serve.

I barbecued the lamb with some potatoes wrapped in foil. They are a delicious accompaniment!