Description
If
you're looking for leg of lamb that is so tender you can pull it apart
with a fork and is medium rare all the way through you need to try sous
vide leg of lamb.
What makes sous vide leg of lamb so delicious is how the long cooking time makes everything incredibly tender while the low temperature keeps everything medium rare. This is the type of dish where sous vide really stands out as a cooking method and gives you something that you can't get with other cooking methods.
A big advantage to cooking sous vide is how it locks juices and flavors into food. The flavor for this leg of lamb comes from a fresh rosemary and thyme herb and spice mixture that has the time to penetrate deep into the lamb. This also is one of few recipes for leg of lamb where it helps to have a boneless leg of lamb.
The recipe is designed for sous vide cooking, but would also work as a roasted leg of lamb with a dramatic reduction in cooking time. If you need more information about how to cook sous vide read our article on Getting Started with Sous Vide.
What makes sous vide leg of lamb so delicious is how the long cooking time makes everything incredibly tender while the low temperature keeps everything medium rare. This is the type of dish where sous vide really stands out as a cooking method and gives you something that you can't get with other cooking methods.
A big advantage to cooking sous vide is how it locks juices and flavors into food. The flavor for this leg of lamb comes from a fresh rosemary and thyme herb and spice mixture that has the time to penetrate deep into the lamb. This also is one of few recipes for leg of lamb where it helps to have a boneless leg of lamb.
The recipe is designed for sous vide cooking, but would also work as a roasted leg of lamb with a dramatic reduction in cooking time. If you need more information about how to cook sous vide read our article on Getting Started with Sous Vide.
Ingredients
4 1/2 pound leg of lamb, boneless
2 tbsp rosemary
2 tbsp thyme
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
4 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lemon
2 tbsp rosemary
2 tbsp thyme
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
4 cloves garlic
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lemon
Details
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 10 to 14 hours
Servings: 10 to 14 servings
Cooking Time: 10 to 14 hours
Servings: 10 to 14 servings
Instructions
Start by getting your sous vide cooking station set up and your immersion circulator set to 134℉.
Prepare the herb mixture by mincing the garlic, rosemary, and thyme and mixing them together with the salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and olive oil. Slice half a lemon into rounds.
Spread the herb mixture on the lamb, making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies. Put the lemon slices on the lamb and vacuum-seal everything in a plastic bag. You can use a heavy duty freezer bag or a food saver that vacuums out the air.
Place the leg into the water bath and cook it for at least 10 hours to make sure it cooks all the way through.
After 10 to 14 hours take the lamb out of the water and the plastic bag. Place the lamb a medium high grill for five minutes, turn it over and grill the other side for another five minutes. Repeat this twice, making sure the grill doesn't flare up. The goal here is to get the outside of the lamb nice and crispy, without cooking the inside anymore.
Let the lamb rest under foil for 15 minutes. Slice the lamb to serve.
Prepare the herb mixture by mincing the garlic, rosemary, and thyme and mixing them together with the salt, pepper, smoked paprika, and olive oil. Slice half a lemon into rounds.
Spread the herb mixture on the lamb, making sure to get into all the nooks and crannies. Put the lemon slices on the lamb and vacuum-seal everything in a plastic bag. You can use a heavy duty freezer bag or a food saver that vacuums out the air.
Place the leg into the water bath and cook it for at least 10 hours to make sure it cooks all the way through.
After 10 to 14 hours take the lamb out of the water and the plastic bag. Place the lamb a medium high grill for five minutes, turn it over and grill the other side for another five minutes. Repeat this twice, making sure the grill doesn't flare up. The goal here is to get the outside of the lamb nice and crispy, without cooking the inside anymore.
Let the lamb rest under foil for 15 minutes. Slice the lamb to serve.
Notes
We
recommend against cooking the leg of lamb more than 15 hours. At a
certain point so much of the fat leaches out that the tender meat can
become a little mealy.
If you don't have a grill available you can also finish the lamb in a broiler. The purpose behind both methods is to finish the lamb using high heat for a short period of time to crisp up the outside, without cooking the interior anymore.
If you don't have a grill available you can also finish the lamb in a broiler. The purpose behind both methods is to finish the lamb using high heat for a short period of time to crisp up the outside, without cooking the interior anymore.
