Prep time: 20 min
Total time: 2 hrs, 10 min
Serves: 8
Rub
1 tbsp – fennel seeds
1 tbsp – black peppercorns, whole
1 tsp – chili flakes
1 tbsp – fresh thyme, chopped
1 tsp – fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tbsp – fresh oregano
1 cup – Italian parsley, chopped
5 – garlic cloves, chopped
1 tsp – orange zest
3 kg – Alberta lamb leg
Kosher salt to taste
1 tbsp– olive oil
5 cups – thinly sliced vegetables (fennel bulb, carrots, zucchini, green beans, bell peppers, radicchio wedges, etc.)
4 cups – couscous
3 – tbsp olive oil
½ cup – raisins
6 cups – vegetable stock
1 cup – feta, crumbled
Preheat oven to 325F.
In a dry skillet over medium heat, toast the fennel and black peppercorns until fragrant. Grind in a food processor until coarse, not fine. Mix in with the rest of the rub ingredients.
Debone the lamb leg and butterfly it. Leave the shank bone on if you wish. Even out the thickness of the butterflied meat with a mallet. Massage in most of the rub plus salt to taste and roll up the lamb. Tie it tightly with butcher twine. Sprinkle the rest of the rub and some more salt on top.
Place the lamb in a roasting pan and drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil. Roast about an hour for medium rare (140F internal temperature) or 1 hour 20 minutes for medium (150F internal temperature). In the last 25 minutes, add the vegetables to the pan and baste them with the pan drippings.
Once the lamb is cooked to desired doneness, remove from the oven and let it rest for 20 minutes. In the meantime, combine the couscous, 3 tbsp olive oil and raisins in a bowl. Bring the vegetable stock to a boil and pour over the couscous. Stir and cover with a lid. Let rest until the couscous has absorbed all the liquid.
To serve, place the couscous on the bottom of a platter and then slice the lamb across the grain and place over the couscous. Add the cooked vegetables to the platter, top with pan drippings and sprinkle feta on top.
Raj Nandamudi is the Culinary Development Chef at Sunterra Market. Before he joined the Sunterra Market team, he gained experience with the InterContinental Hilton and Fairmont groups around the world, working with every major cuisine. Even so, he credits Sunterra Market’s varied menu, and the different perspectives of Sunterra Market’s 250 plus chefs he works with and trains, for his extensive food knowledge. Raj believes that food is always evolving and that you can’t stop learning and being creative.