Roast leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic pesto

Name: Roast leg of lamb with rosemary and garlic pesto
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 1 h 40 min
Yield: Serves 6
Cuisine: British recipes
Ingredients: 1.8-2kg leg of lamb, boned and rolled (about 1.5kg boned weight), bones reserved; 1 large onion, halved and thickly sliced; 1 large carrot, thickly sliced; 4 large fresh rosemary sprigs; For the pesto; 2 large fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves picked and chopped; 15g fresh flatleaf parsley; 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped; Finely grated zest 1 lemon; 3-4 tbsp olive oil; ½ tsp salt; You’ll also need…; Digital probe thermometer

Portion size: Serves 6
Hands-on 30 min, oven 65-70 min, plus marinating and resting
Difficulty: easy

Recipe by: Debbie Major

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This succulent roast leg of lamb with a herby pesto marinade is great for a special family weekend roast or Easter lunch. And roast lamb is always guaranteed to impress at a dinner party, too.

Looking for that perfect roast lamb recipe? Check out the recipes in our roast lamb leg recipe collection.

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Ingredients

1.8-2kg leg of lamb, boned and rolled (about 1.5kg boned weight), bones reserved
1 large onion, halved and thickly sliced
1 large carrot, thickly sliced
4 large fresh rosemary sprigs

For the pesto

2 large fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves picked and chopped
15g fresh flatleaf parsley
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
Finely grated zest 1 lemon
3-4 tbsp olive oil
½ tsp salt

You’ll also need…

Digital probe thermometer

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Method

Using a sharp knife, make small 2.5cm deep slits all over the lamb, about 2.5cm apart.
For the pesto, whizz all the ingredients – using 3 tbsp oil – with some black pepper in a mini food processor (or whizz in a jug using a stick blender) to form a paste. Add more oil if it’s a bit thick.
Rub the pesto all over the lamb, pushing it into each slit as you go. Season, then put on a plate, cover loosely with cling film and set aside somewhere cool or in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
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Take the meat out of the fridge 2 hours before you want to cook it. Heat the oven to 230°C/fan 210°C/gas 8. Scatter the lamb bones, onion, carrot and rosemary in a roasting tin. Rest the lamb on top, then roast for 15 minutes in the middle of the oven. Lower the heat to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4 and roast for 50 minutes (for rare) or 55 minutes (for medium). A digital thermometer pushed into the thickest part of the meat should read between 50°C and 60°C.
Remove the lamb from the oven, lift the joint onto a carving board and cover loosely with foil (discard the bones but reserve the veg in the tin). Rest for 45 minutes or until the gravy and side dishes are ready.