Roast Leg of Lamb with Herbs, Honey & Mustard

 5 from 6 reviews

Roast Leg of Lamb crusted with Herbs, Honey & Mustard is a real masterpiece. A succulently flavorful roasted lamb livened with the most classic herb and mustard crust. We’re also checking out some great ingredients to take your one-pot roasted leg of lamb recipe to the next level.

Hello my friends. Have you already chosen the main course for your next dinner party or holiday meal? Even if you have, you might want to consider today’s crusted leg of lamb instead.

Here’s the deal. Lamb is meaty, intensely flavorful, and strong of character. It’s a showstopper. Yet, lamb’s very same virtues make it hard to cook right, especially with seasoning. But when done right, it's the easiest meat to cook.

For a great leg of lamb, you need to match the meat’s flavor intensity with your herbs and spices, and we’re doing just that with a rich fine herb, honey, and mustard crust. We’ll rub our herb and mustard paste all over the lamb, in and out, to allow the meat to absorb the most fragrant of flavors. Once your lamb hits the oven, it will all come together, and I’m tasting it already!

Let’s break our ingredients down for you. Rosemary leaves, thyme, and garlic are quintessential herbs. The combination is floral, piney, and basically just heartwarming.

We’re also using Dijon mustard, which adds a piquant and spicy flavor to the leg of lamb; blending seamlessly with the aromatic herbs.

Then we have the honey, which helps our herbs stick and adds a graceful sweetness to the lamb meat. If you have the opportunity of using lavender honey for your roasted leg of lamb recipe, do so. I would not be surprised if this is the first of many specialty honeys in your collection.

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Should I Buy Bone-in or Boneless Leg of Lamb?

First, let’s cover some of the basics question you may have like “should I buy bone-in or boneless leg of lamb”. You can use whichever you can find at your local supermarket or butcher. I prefer to use boneless because I can rub the mustard honey herb seasoning inside the lamb where the bone used to be. Just make sure if you get boneless leg of lamb, tie the lamb tight with kitchen string to help it keep its shape.

Some Nutritional Facts about Lamb

Information found at the American Lamb website

• Lamb is naturally rich in nutrients and it’s a great source of protein, zinc, selenium, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B12, and vitamin B6
• A 3-ounce serving of lamb delivers 23 grams of protein – almost 50% of your daily protein needs.
• Good fats: a 3-ounce serving of lamb contains 3 grams of heart healthy monounsaturated fat. 57% of the fat in lamb is heart healthy monounsaturated fat.
• On average, a 3-ounce serving of Lamb is lean and has only 160 calories, as per the USDA/FSIS definition of “lean”. Lean cuts of lamb include the leg, loin, and shoulder.

What Temperature Should I Roast Leg of Lamb, and What’s the Right Internal Temperature?

Below I have for you an easy chart but first, preheat the oven at 500F degrees. Let the leg of lamb stand at room temperature while the oven heats, and prepare the seasoning during that time.

When you roast any animal protein, we calculate the cooking time depending on how much the meat weighs and how much you want the lamb cooked. Before you put the lamb in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 325F degrees.

Please note that the cooking instructions below are only guidelines. Depending on many circumstances, your leg of lamb may roast slower or faster. Check the internal temperature after cooking one hour and then continue roasting, constantly checking until the lamb reaches your desired internal temperature.

Roasting Chart for Lamb Leg

Roast at 325˚F for a 4-7 lbs. lamb leg either boneless or bone-in

• medium-rare = 25-25 min/lb. for an internal temperature of 145˚F
• medium = 25-35 min/lb. for an internal temperature of 160˚F
• well-done = 30-35 min/lb. for an internal temperature of 170˚F

How to Cook Leg of lamb - Step by Step

Here is my personal process when I cook lamb, pork, or goat meat. I wash the meat with water and a second wash with lemon, lime, or sour orange. In Dominican Republic, or at least in my family, we have this tradition when cooking those meats.

Ready for a pink, juicy, and beautifully seasoned crusted leg of lamb? Let me show you how simple and easy it is to cook a leg of lamb packed with flavor, just with a few ingredients over a bed of potatoes and carrots. We are using the same seasoning to roast vegetables too.

1. Trim the extra fat from the leg of lamb. You can leave a thin layer to protect the meat from getting dry. I decided to remove the fat altogether. Prick the lamb with a knife to help the seasoning penetrate the meat.

2. Prepare the rub seasoning: In a food processor, pulse the chopped rosemary, thyme, and garlic. Also, add the Dijon Mustard by Edmond Fallot, Lavender Honey, sea salt, and olive oil. This time I’m using Greek EVOO. Process until is smooth.

3. Rub in with sea salt and ground black pepper and massage it to penetrate the meat. Spread the herb mustard honey crust all over the lamb leg.
4. Roll up the meat and tie at 1-inch intervals with kitchen string.
5. Cut the potatoes and carrots at a medium size cut. You don’t want the vegetables to cook too fast (they will if they are too small). Season with the herbs mustard honey mix.

6. Roast at 325˚F for about 1-½ hours, checking the internal temperature using an instant-read thermometer after an hour. Check every 15 minutes after that. The lamb leg may roast slower or faster, depending on many factors.
7. Rest: remove the lamb from the oven and let it rest at least 10 minutes before cutting.

Pro Tips for the Perfect Leg of Lamb

• Before cooking bring the lamb to room temperature at least an hour before.
• Don’t marinate lamb. Marinating lamb can make the meat tougher. The purpose of marinade is to help break down the tough fibers in meat. Lamb is naturally so tender, marinating can destroy the meat's integrity — the texture and flavor — and make it difficult to eat.
• Don’t overcook the lamb. Always use an instant-read thermometer.
• Remove the lamb from the oven when the internal temperature reaches 10 degrees lower than your desire doneness. The lamb, when resting, will continue cooking and will increase the temperature around 5-10 degrees.
• After cooking let the lamb rest at least for 10 minutes before cutting.
• Cutting the lamb: You should always cut any kind of meat against the grain.
• Storing Leftover Lamb: Roasted lamb will last in the refrigerator for three days and store in the freezer for up to three months.

I hope you get a chance to make this Roasted Leg of Lamb with Herbs, Honey & Mustard. Did you make this or another recipe? Tag @Spoonabilities on Instagram or add a photo or comment on Pinterest, so we can find you! And we love to hear from you in the comment section below.

Carlos Leo
Your Recipe Concierge

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Roast Leg of Lamb with Herbs, Honey & Mustard Recipe

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5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 6 reviews

• Author: Carlos Leo
• Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
• Yield: 14 1x

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Description

A whole boneless leg of lamb crusted with rosemary, thyme, garlic, a good Dijon mustard, and lovely lavender honey. This leg of lamb recipe is a fantastic main course for dinner with the family; a show-stopping piece worthy of the most memorable dinner parties.

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• One 7-pound leg of lamb, boneless, with trimmed extra fat
• Juice of one lemon - get the zest before squeezing the juice.
• 1 tablespoon sea salt* see notes
• ½ tablespoon ground black pepper* see notes
• Head of garlic - Optional

 Herb-mustard-honey mixture

• ¼ cup chopped rosemary leaves
• 3 teaspoons thyme leaves
• 6 chopped garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons Dijon Mustard
• ¼ cup Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
• ½ cup regular or Lavender Honey
• Zest of one lemon
• 2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Roast the leg of lamb in a bed of potatoes and carrots or any root vegetables

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 500°F for 30 minutes. Let the leg of lamb stand at room temperature while the oven heats, and at least an hour.
2. Prepare the seasoning mixture: In a mini food processor, pulse to blend together the rosemary, thyme, garlic, mustard, olive oil, and honey. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Wash the leg of lamb with the lemon juice.
4. Seasoning: On a baking tray, place the leg of lamb and season with salt and pepper (reserve some), rubbing them into the meat. Spread the herb mustard mixture (reserve 1-2 tablespoons) all over the lamb, inside and out.
5. Roll up the meat and tie it with kitchen string. Add more herb mustard on top of the lamb and the remaining salt and pepper.
6. Lift the lamb and place the potatoes and carrots in the baking tray. Place the seasoned leg of lamb on top of the vegetables, and add the head of garlic with the top cut off (this is optional)
7. Reduce the oven temperature to 325°F and roast the lamb for about 1 and ½ hours or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of the meat registers 130°F (medium-rare). See notes about the temperature change. I recommend starting to check the temperature after the first hour and check every 15 minutes thereafter until the lamb is ready.
8. Let the lamb rest for 10-15 minutes. Then remove the string, slice, and serve.

Notes

The herb honey mustard mix can be made the day before.

Take the lamb out of the refrigerator at least an hour before cooking and bring to room temperature.

The amount of salt and pepper will depend on the size of your lamb, and your taste. The amount listed in the recipe is to season the leg of lamb and there is some left to season the vegetables.

Use an instant-read thermometer to take the meat temperature.

Remove the lamb from the oven when the internal temperature reaches 10 degrees lower than your desire doneness. When resting, the lamb will continue cooking and will increase the temperature around 5-10 degrees.

After cooking, leave the lamb to rest for at least 10 minutes.

Roasted lamb will last in the refrigerator for three days and store in the freezer for up to three months.

• Prep Time: 15
• Cook Time: 90
• Category: dinner / holiday
• Method: roasting
• Cuisine: International

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