In parts of Portugal it is a tradition to eat lamb, or goat, in Easter Sunday. this is a recipe from the Southern Portugal, Alentejo, with my own twist. It requires very little cooking know-how and very few ingredients. It does require to be marinated in advance for the full flavor experience.

Taste: amazing!

Replacements

Instead of piri-piri sauce, use sweet paprika powder, about a tablespoon. This will not add as much heat to the dish, so you can also add a little cayenne pepper for that. I served it with sliced oranges, and it tasted good, but it is not a requirement.

Tip

If your supermarket doesn’t have Lamb, look for an Halal butcher, or a Indian / Arab / Turkish supermarket.

Source

I used this recipe as a starting point, but added my own twist, and oven times and temperature.

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• Servings: 6
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Marinating time: 8 hours
• Cooking Time: 2 hours
• Total Time: 2 hours and 30 mins

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Ingredients

• Leg of lamb: 2 kgs, cut in pieces
• White wine, dry: 1 liter (at least)
• Onions: 2, cut in half and then diced
• Garlic: 6 cloves, chopped
• potatoes: 6 medium, 1-2 cm cubes or wedges
• carrots: 6, 1-2 cm cubes or wedges
• green beans: 200 grams
• Rosemary: 2 sprigs
• Parsley: 2 stalks
• Bay leaves: 2
• Lemon juice: 1 tbsp
• Olive oil, 3 tbsp
• Sea salt: to taste
• Piri-piri: to taste, about 1 tbsp

Directions

1. At the bottom of an oven-proof, ideally ceramic, make a layer with the onions, garlic and bay leaves. Drizzle with the olive oil.
2. Lay on top of the onions the lamb pieces, scatter the salt and piri-piri (or paprika).
3. In between the pieces of lamb, tuck in the rosemary and parsley
4. Pour the wine until all the meat is nearly covered, and finally pour the lemon juice.
5. Cover and let it rest for several hours, ideally overnight, in the fridge.
6. Heat the oven to 175º c, and cook for 2 hours. You can check if the meat is done after one and half hours.
7. While the meat is in the oven, peel and cut the potatoes and carrots, put them in a roasting tin. Pour over a small glass of white wine and salt to taste (a crushed garlic or two will also do wonders).
8. Once the meat has been in the oven for one hour, add the tray with vegetables to the oven and cook for 45 minutes to one hour (the wedges will take longer).
9. Once the meat is nearly done, boil the green beens for 5-10 minutes until tender but not overdone.
10. Enjoy

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