Baked lamb is a gourmet but not overly complex dish. It can be cooked in a variety of ways, such as roasting until dark crispy, or with blood, marinating the meat in wine, vegetable oil, or yogurt. Lamb dishes are almost always successful, especially if you master a few nuances of their preparation.
Baked lamb: how to bake in the oven
Choosing meat for roasting
The main thing is to choose the right piece of lamb. Traditionally, the hind leg is taken for baking. You can cook it whole or purchase one of two parts – the leg itself or a tender fillet. The thick edge is no less popular; it is a part of the neck with 6–8 ribs. The sirloin, the lumbar part of the carcass, is also good. A piece of two pieces of back joined together is called a lamb saddle and is sold with kidneys.
For simpler dishes, you can purchase brisket, which makes delicious baked rolls. Those who like more high-calorie meals will love the scoop. An excellent Greek-style roast is made from it – fatty meat with a crispy crust, completely lagging behind the bones.
The purchased meat must be of high quality. Pay attention to smell and color; good lamb has a pleasant light aroma and a uniform pink color without suspicious spots. The fat on the piece should be firm, and the skin should be firm and not slippery.
Lamb preparation
To prevent cooking meat from becoming a problem, take care of preparing the selected piece even when buying. Ask the butcher to chop the lamb into the desired pieces, this is especially important if you plan to bake the meat with ribs.
Before baking, rinse the meat well and pat dry with paper towels. Cut off excess fat. If you are preparing a neck hem, trim the ends of the ribs and cut the leather crosswise to create a decorative effect. Cut off the skin from the leg of lamb, make punctures in the meat with a knife and insert rosemary greens and garlic cloves into them.
Defrost frozen lamb slowly, then the meat will not lose its taste and characteristic rich aroma
Planning for a crispy brown meat? Then roast the lamb on the wire rack. Place the prepared piece on a wire rack, put a deep baking sheet down. The fat and juice dripping off the meat can be used to make the sauce.
For those who prefer very soft meat with a delicate taste, it is better to bake it in foil. Wrap the prepared piece tightly in foil and place on a baking sheet.
Observe the temperature and baking time. Keep in mind that boneless meat takes longer to cook, because the latter conduct heat. It is best to bake lamb at a temperature of 200 ° C, and you need to put the dish in an already preheated oven. In 18 minutes, 450 g of meat with bone will be fried until half-baked (with blood inside). After 25 minutes, the same piece will reach the medium stage, and after half an hour it will be completely cooked.
Check the condition of the lamb by piercing the piece with a thin knife. Pink juice indicates that you have cooked meat with blood, a dull translucent one indicates medium roast, and a very small amount of almost transparent juice indicates that the mutton is completely cooked.