I found a bone-in leg of lamb on sale at the grocery store a few weeks ago. I nabbed it and stuck it in the freezer for later. I was initially planning on trying out a Cook's Country recipe with it. But then I spotted this recipe in the contemporary curries chapter of 660 Curries. Iyer notes that a beef roast makes a perfectly fine alternative to lamb here, but... I like lamb and I wanted to give it a try this way.

The roast is, as expected, delicious. I mean, it's lamb smeared with a spiced nut paste; what's not to like? But the sauce really stole the show. It was amazing! I think the long cooking time really brings out the best in everything.

Leg of Lamb with Onion-Coconut Sauce

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

Lamb

• 1 (1.1-1.4kg) bone-in leg of lamb
• 1/4 c. plain yogurt
• 1/4 c. slivered almonds
• 1/4 c. raw cashews
• 1/4 c. raw shelled pistachios
• 2 Tbsp. ginger paste
• 1 Tbsp. garlic paste
• 1-2 tsp. ground Kashmiri chilies¹
• 1 tsp. coarse sea salt

Sauce

• 1-2 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 2 tsp. bottle masala
• 1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt
• 1/4 c. water
• 1 (400mL) can coconut milk²
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Make four or five 6-mm deep slashes in the meat and set it in a shallow baking pan.
2. Add the yogurt, almonds, cashews, pistachios, and ginger and garlic pastes to a blender and purée until smooth.
3. Pour the nut paste into a bowl and stir in the chilies and salt.
4. Slather the marinade over the lamb, being sure to coat it thoroughly.
5. Cover and chill overnight.
6. The next day, preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F).
7. Meanwhile, place a rack in a roasting pan (or on a rimmed baking sheet). Spray it with cooking spray and transfer the lamb to the prepared rack. Allow to sit at room temperature while the oven preheats. Reserve any marinade that doesn't cling to the lamb.
8. Roast the lamb at 220°C (425°F) until lightly browned on the outside (10-15 minutes).
9. Reduce temperature to 160°C (325°F) and cook for another 15 minutes.
10. Remove lamb from oven and baste with any reserved marinade. If the pan is dry, pour a little water in to help keep everything moist and prevent the drippings from burning.
11. Continue to roast until meat registers 57-60°C (135-140°F) in the thickest part (60-80 minutes). Check every 20 minutes or so to see if the pan needs more water or if the meat drippings are in danger of overflowing.
12. Meanwhile, heat the oil for the sauce over medium-high heat.
13. Add the onion and garlic and stir-fry until caramel-brown (10-15 minutes).
14. Add the tomato paste, bottle masala, and salt and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the paste begins to look oily on the surface (1-2 minutes).
15. Add the water and deglaze the pan.
16. Add the coconut milk and bring to a boil.
17. Reduce heat to medium and boil, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced to just over half its original volume (20-25 minutes). Cover and keep warm until ready to serve.
18. Once lamb is done, remove from oven and rest for 10 minutes.
19. Slice the lamb and stir the cilantro into the sauce.
20. Serve the lamb, allowing diners to top with sauce at the table.

---

¹ The original recipe calls for 2 tsp. I scaled this back slightly for the sake of the Kidlet. I used 1/2 Tbsp. this time and that seemed to be okay. Might try the full amount next time. Also, if you don't have Kashmiri chilies, you can substitute a mixture of 1 part ground cayenne to 3 parts sweet paprika. ^Back
2 We used regular coconut milk this time around because we had a can that was getting close to its expiry. That said, you could probably shave quite a few calories by swapping the regular coconut milk out for lite. ^Back