Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb

I used to think the medium rare was the only way to go with lamb recipes. But I was wrong! This Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb is juicy and can be cut with a fork!

Your slow cooker will do most of the heavy lifting and it’s simple enough for a weeknight dinner and still elegant enough to serve to company.

In fact, this is what we had for Thanksgiving dinner this year and I don’t know if my family will ever agree to go back to turkey. It’s that good!

🥘Ingredients:

• 3 lb Leg of lamb roast – I used boneless.

Fat & elastin trimmed – this gets rid of the strong gamey taste most people fuss about.

Since I had a “tied” leg of lamb roast that I bought at Costco – I unwrapped and unrolled it, and trimmed all of the thick, hard fat off of the meat.

You wouldn’t do this with beef roast, but it takes some of that strong gamey flavor that I hear people complain about out of the lamb.

• 2 tsp Salt *enough to generously rub into the meat. I used about 2 tsp.

Don’t worry, it won’t be salty. You want that salt to be rubbed into the meat because it will bring out the flavor.

• 1 tsp Black pepper *enough to generously pepper to meat. I used about 1 tsp.

Don’t be afraid to use your hands and massage the pepper into the fibers of the meat.

• 2 tbsp Olive oil *enough to sear the lamb in.

You’ll need enough to coat the bottom of your pan while you are searing the lamb.

• 10 garlic cloves

Most of the carb in this lamb recipe actually come from the garlic cloves. But, you don’t want to skimp on these.

Your lamb won’t be overly garlicky, but it will absorb the nice savory flavor of the garlic.

• 2 tsp rosemary dried

When my daughter was little she begged me for “Pine Needle” roast beef. It took a while to figure out rosemary was what she wanted on the beef…

It does have a “piney” flavor. If you are not a huge fan, you can easily sub in tarragon or savory leaves instead.

• 1 tsp thyme dried

I love thyme on meat dishes…but since this isn’t about me, you can substitute oregano and marjoram in it’s place if needed.

• 1 cup Red Wine

The red wine tenderizes the meat like nothing else. And, all of the boozy effects will evaporate as the lamb cooks.

Still, if you don’t keep booze in the house for any number of reasons, use an extra cup of broth in it’s place.

• 1 cup broth beef or chicken broth

Beef is best but you can certainly use chicken broth too. In fact, it’s what I used for our Thanksgiving dinner because it’s what I had on hand.

• 2-3 bay leaves

• 1 Onion Sliced

You’ll be slicing the veggies and laying them on the bottom of the post so that your gorgeous lamb roast and the sauce will absorb the flavors.

You can either serve them along side the lamb or discard them (ugh, that’s hard for me to write, I always serve them but we rarely finish them). I hate throwing food away.

Maybe that’s part of the reason that we needed to start eating low carb in the first place right?

Note: The veggies are NOT included in the nutrition info for consumption because they are a sort of flavoring/spice for the meat.

• 2 Celery Sticks * Optional for flavor -sliced

• 1 carrot * Optional for flavor- sliced

Optional Garnish:

• Parsley – chopped

This makes your dish pretty. Use it if you have it on hand. Skip if if you don’t.

👨🏿‍🍳How to make the Slow Cooked Lamb:

1.) Trim the thick outer fat and elastin from the lamb. You can unroll the boneless leg of lamb and trim the inside too of desired. This is where the gamey flavor in lamb comes from.

2.) If time allows let lamb set on the counter for 1 hour, until it is room temp. If not, continue.

3.) Pat lamb dry and season generously with salt and black pepper, getting into all of the crevices.

4.) Coat the bottom of a large skillet with olive oil, cast iron is ideal.

Heat skillet over medium heat until hot. Add the lamb and sear well on all sides. This takes 5-8 minutes. Work in batches if you have several pieces of meat instead of one roast. Remove from heat until cool enough to handle.

5.) Cut a slits into the lamb on all sides and insert a clove of garlic in each of the slits. Cut large cloves in half if the cloves are unreasonably large.

6.) Rub the rest of the spices into the lamb with your hands.

7.) Add Onion, bay leaves, carrot and celery (if using) to the bottom of a large slow cooker (crock pot).

Add wine and broth and add the seared & spiced lamb on top.

8.) Cover slow cooker and set on low for 5 to 6 hours or on high for 3-4 hours until lamb is fork-tender and it easily falls apart.

Your lamb will be very tender when it’s ready and threaten to “fall apart” when you check it with tongs or a fork.

Because slow cooker vary in temperatures – check the lamb and reduce to “warm” if it’s falling apart too far ahead of serving time.

Or increase to “high” if it isn’t tender an hour before dinner will be served.

Add a bit more broth or wine (or both) if desired to make more “serving sauce” if your pot emits steam and it’s running dry. You won’t need much because it’s so rich.

But no matter what, don’t let your crock pot run dry!

9.) You can either discard the bay leaves and vegetables or serve on the side if desired. (Not included in the nutrition. They are included in the pot mostly for flavor.)

10.) Transfer to a serving platter and add the resulting rich broth to a gravy boat on the side to serve.

Keeps chilled for 3-4 days. Freeze it if you won’t be able to use it in that amount of time.

📋Tips & FAQ’s:

Can I make the Mediterranean Lamb ahead of time?

Sure. I think it may be difficult to go through an entire day inhaling this rich, intoxicating aroma and not have any of it for dinner. But you certainly can make it ahead of time and re-heat it.

I have attempted to make slow cooker meals overnight so that they would be ready for lunchtime. But, they interrupted my sleep and drove me crazy with hunger in the middle of the night.

Can I freeze the Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb?

Yes, just make sure your package is airtight to avoid freezer burn. Once it thaws it might be best in a soup or stew.

What goes with the slow cooked lamb recipe?

• Sugar Free Cranberry Sauce – Forget about “Mint Jelly” this cranberry sauce is amazing with lamb.
• Garlic Parm Green Beans
• Caprese Salad
• Cauliflower Mash
• Pumpkin Souffle
• Hawaiian Rolls – The slightly sweet roll is amazing with this savory meat!

That’s all for the Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb Recipe!

If you like lamb you ‘ll love this Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb recipe. There is no doubt in my mind.

Even my teen, who isn’t impressed by much these days, ate enough that she didn’t have room for Thanksgiving dessert (none of us did).

If that isn’t a compliment to the meal, I don’t know what is💖 .

The nutritional information for the Slow Cooked Mediterranean Lamb is provided as a courtesy.

We are pretty careful about our figures but if you ever feel like anything is off please feel free to do your own calculations.