Slow Roasted Shoulder of Lamb

Ingredients

• 1kg Half shoulder of lamb
• 1 tbsp Olive oil
• 2-3 Sprigs of rosemary (although as I grow my own, I took around 6 of the tips of the sprigs as they are the most tender)
• 3 Cloves of garlic
• Coarsely ground black pepper
• For the gravy
• Beef or lamb stock (you can use a stock cube and water but fresh stock is better if you have it)
• 1-2 tbsp Cornflour (cornstarch)

Method

Preheat the oven to 220oC / 450F.  Fry the lamb shoulder on all sides until browned.  Discard any oil and fat in the pan.

Smash together the garlic, rosemary and pepper in a pestle and mortar until broken up (it doesn't have to form a paste).  Rub over the lamb shoulder and put into a baking dish.  Pour 100ml (3.5 fl oz, just under half a cup) of cold water around the lamb.  Cover with a layer of baking paper and then wrap well with foil and I mean well, you want to seal it as well as possible.

Put in the oven for 30 minutes and then lower the temperature to 170oC, 340F and roast for a further 2 hours or until tender.

Allow to rest for a good 20 minutes and in the meantime drain off the juices into a jug.  Scoop off the fat from the juices, there will be quite a bit, shoulder can be a fatty cut.  Mix the juices complete with the bits of rosemary and garlic (they're tasty) with the stock and bring to the boil.  Reduce until to your liking.  With the stock mixture boiling, mix 1-2 tbsp cornflour with cold water and whisk in, bring to the boil until thickened.  The amount of cornflour you will need will depend on how much stock you have.  Just see how thick it is and add more if you feel it needs it.

Carve the lamb, this won't carve into super neat slices because it is so soft but do watch out as there are a couple of natural fatty layers in a shoulder so you might want to cut them off rather than serve them.