Roast Lamb with Anchovies and Garlic

Roast lamb with anchovies and garlic are a marriage made in heaven. This recipe cooks things low and slow, flavoured with salty, umami-laden anchovies and fragrant garlic. The results are meltingly tender lamb that is packed with rich, intense flavour.

Lamb is one of my favourites and there’s no better way to cook it than low and slow. Over time the meat transforms into a butter-soft texture that falls apart at the slightest touch. Flavouring lamb is often just left to rosemary, which is nice, but I prefer to harness the pure magic of anchovies.

Lamb, anchovies and garlic are a tried, tested and adored combination across Europe, including Italy which is where I first sampled this dish. The salty umami of anchovies are just heavenly when cooked over time. There’s not a trace of fishiness, instead just a rich, salty and intensely flavourful magic running through the meat. It’s my favourite way to cook lamb, you won’t disagree once you’ve tried yourself.

It’s a wonderful Sunday roast idea or as an alternative for Thanksgiving or holiday dinner. In Italy, it’s a traditional Easter dish as that’s when the Spring lamb is at its very best! Especially in the region of Abruzzo where the lamb is arguably the best in Italy, and where I first sampled this treasure.

I can’t imagine only eating this once a year, so I’ll cook it at every opportunity I get, and nobody is complaining.

Why it works?

It's pure umami heaven - I know the word umami is thrown around willy-nilly these days, but it really is the only way to properly express the flavour explosion of this dish. Lamb is fabulous on its own, but when combined with anchovies and garlic it takes on a new life. I LOVE this roast lamb recipe so much! Oh, and it's super easy - all you need is patience.

Stuff You'll Need

This lamb dish is pretty simple in its ingredients and preparation. Here's what you'll need to make the magic happen.

• Lamb - I like on the bone for slow cooking as it creates the best texture without drying out. I used a half leg for this recipe, but the timings will be the same for a full leg or bone-in shoulder cut too.
• Anchovies - a whole can, and all its oil - it's all flavour.
• Garlic - Plenty of it, I use around 6 cloves
• Lemon - zest and juice for a hint of sweetness
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil - helps to keep the meat nice and succulent
• Parsley - for a little herbal note
• Salt & pepper - you can ease off the salt a little as the anchovies bring a lot, but be genrous with the black pepper.

Step by Step

It couldn't be easier to prepare this dish, a few simple steps is all it takes. Preheat your oven to 130ºC/270ºF to get started.

1. Step 1 - Put the anchovies, their oil, lemon zest, juice, garlic, parsley, salt & pepper into a pestle & mortar (or something to blend in)
2. Step 2 - Blend until 'rustically smooth' - i.e. rough, smooth, it doesn't matter.
3. Step 3 - Place the lamb into a roasting tin just big enough and make some deep cuts with a sharp knife.
4. Step 4 - Pour the anchovy mix all over the lamb and push into the deep cuts to ensure the flavour will permeate the meat during cooking.
5. Step 5 - Pour about a cupful of water into the bottom of the tin then cover the meat well with foil. Place in the oven and roast for 4 hours in total (basting the meat every 30 minutes or so). During the last 30 minutes, remove the foil and turn up the heat to 200ºC/400ºF to brown the surface.
6. Step 6 - Optional, with 1 hour to go, tumble some baby potatoes into the pan juices and cook until soft.

Remove from the pan and serve on the bone or stripped from the bone and gently separated into chunks. Serve the potatoes on the side if you followed this step.

Pro Tips

• Additional potatoes - Cooking some potatoes in the juices and oils from the meat is a triumphant way to enjoy even more of the flavour from the lamb and anchovies. The fat from the lamb almost confit cooks the potatoes, leaving them soft, creamy and packed with flavour. They're the perfect little side dish to the lamb too.
• Deep cuts - Making deep cuts into the meat before cooking will ensure more of the flavour can be injected into the meat. Be sure to push as much of that paste into the lamb before it cooks.

Serving & Storage Suggestions

Serve as the main affair to a feast. Cooking the potatoes in the juices will save you a job of cooking a side dish, so that's a helpful bonus! As for other dishes, I like to serve some simply cooked vegetables like asparagus, broccoli and carrot or serve with a crunchy green salad.

To keep the meat moist, spoon over some of the cooking juices - I like it served warm, but room temperature is ok too.

Wrap any leftover meat in foil and refrigerate for up to 5 days. The meat is great for sandwiches, salads or chopped and added to a simple Italian marinara sauce for a flavour injection. The last time I cooked this, I actually used the leftover meat cut into chunks and served as a quick Indian curry/stir fry made with tomatoes, mixed spices and fresh curry leaves - it was a triumph!

Ready to get cooking?

So, make your next roast something delicious. I tend to think of this roast as something Italian, but there are similar recipes across continental Europe which use the three main ingredients of lamb, anchovies and garlic. Let that guide how YOU serve it, but in any eventuality, I'm sure that you'll find it as super-charged in flavour as I do. It's one of the tastiest lamb dishes on my menu and I hope you enjoy it too!

More tasty Italian recipes

If you liked this recipe for Roast lamb with anchovies and garlic, I'm sure you'll love some more of my best Italian recipes too.

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• Italian Baked Lamb & Potatoes
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• Vitello Tonnato (Veal with Tuna & Anchovy Sauce)
  
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• Paccheri Pasta with Neapolitan Ragù
  
• Pampanella Molisana (Paprika Roast Pork from Molise)
  
• Anchovy Sauce (An Umami Flavour Sensation)
  
• Tuscan Beans with Pancetta & Cavolo Nero
  
• Italian Sausage & Lentils
  
• Bagna Cauda (Anchovy & Garlic Sauce)

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