Butterflied Leg of Lamb with Chimichurri

Here’s a little taste from my RTE TV show Catherine Celebrates Easter.

This is a delicious way to serve lamb. If you have a larger piece of lamb, don’t forget to increase the quantities for the dry rub to match. And for the salad, leaves of your choice will work well here.

Serves 4 to 6

1.4kg leg of lamb, butterflied (ask your craft butcher to debone and butterfly for you)

For the dry rub
1 lemon, zest only
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 tsp sea salt

For the chimichurri
40g parsley, roughly chopped
40g coriander leaves and stalks, roughly chopped
5 medium size mint leaves
3 medium garlic cloves
2 tsp fresh oregano
3 medium shallots, peeled and halved
½ medium red chilli
80ml rapeseed oil
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp caster sugar
½ to ¾ tsp sea salt

Rosemary sprigs, to garnish the lamb

To prepare the lamb, place all the ingredients for the rub together in a bowl, mix well. Drizzle some oil on the lamb and massage the rub onto the lamb, cover and leave in the fridge for up to 6 hours if you wish.
Preheat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6.
Transfer the lamb into a roasting pan on a trivet of onions, garlic and carrots and roast for 15 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 and cook for a further 18 to 20 minutes if you prefer your lamb medium rare, add on a further 10 to 12 minutes longer if you like it more cooked.
Alternatively, as a general guideline to test for doneness to your preference, allow for a core temperature whilst cooking of 55/59C for medium rare and 60/66C for medium. 67/71C for well done and note that the core temperature increases whilst the lamb is resting in a warm place.
Set aside the meat, covered, to rest, covered, for 20 minutes.

To prepare the chimichurri, place all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse blend to give a lightly textured sauce. Check the seasoning, adding if needed. Spoon into a bowl to serve.